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REMINISCENCE 

OF 

FOUR YEARS 

ASA 

PRIVATE SOLDttR 



8 








REMINISCENCES 




JOH N GILL 






REMINISCENCES OF FOUR 



YEARS AS A PRIVATE SOLDIER 



IN THE 



CONFEDERATE ARMY 



1861-1865 



i^-:: 




BALTIMORE 

SUN PRINTING OFFICE 

1904 






Copyrighted 1904. 



NOTICE 

This little pamphlet is printed for my own pleasure and 
use, without pretense to historical accuracy — it is a personal 
reminiscence only. 

A few copies will be printed for my immediate family and 
friends. 

The matter contained has been jotted down at odd 
moments as the memory of days long ago came back to me. 

JOHN GILL. 



Dedicated to the memory of my dear brother, who gave 
his life to the cause of the South. 

He sleeps on the battle-field, but will awaken at the call of 
the redeemed, and be blessed for evermore. 

♦« There is a bright abode reserved for all good soldiers who 
die in action." 



MEMOIRS 

My grandfather, John Gill, of Alexandria, 
Virginia, the son of Thomas Gill of Notton, 
Yorkshire, England, came to this country just 
after the close of the American Revolution, as 
the resident partner of the shipping firm of 
Abernethy, Lowry & Gill, of London, one of 
the leading firms of that time. 

My grandmother Gill was Esther Lowry, 
daughter of Col. William Lowry and Olivia 
Pickens, his wife, both from Castle Blaney, 
County Monaghan, Ireland. 

Colonel Lowry came to Baltimore in 1794, 
and shortly after was commissioned by Gov- 
ernor Lee, of Maryland, Major of the 27th 
Regiment, Maryland Volunteers. He was sub- 
sequently made Colonel of the Regiment. 

His son, J. Lowry Donaldson, was Adjutant 
of the 27th Regiment in the battle of North 



Point, in which he was killed. He was a dis- 
tinguished lawyer and a member of the Mary- 
land Legislature. His name was changed by 
an Act of Assembly from Lowry to Donaldson, 
in compliance with the request of a rich uncle 
of that name, residing in London. 

My father was Richard W. Gill, son of John 
Gill, of Alexandria, Virginia. My mother was 
Ann E. Deale, daughter of Captain James 
Deale, West River, Anne Arundel County, Md. 
My great grandfather. Captain John Deale, 
was an officer in the 31st Weems Battalion, and 
served during the Revolution in defence of An- 
napolis and that portion of the county border- 
ing on the Chesapeake Bay. My maternal 
grandmother was a Franklin, whose family 
were large property and slave owners in Anne 
Arundel County. 

I was born August 15, 1841, in the City of 
Annapolis. My father died February 28, 1852, 
when I was only ten years old. 

My mother was left with four children, two 
girls and two boys. Fortunately my father had 
left an estate sufficient to provide comfortably 
for all of us, and my mother, being a woman of 



XI 



most excellent sense and judgment, made the 
best possible disposition of her income with the 
view of educating her children. 

My father's death left a scar that time could 
never efface. One of his associates at the bar, in 
announcing his death to a full bench of the 
Court of Appeals of Maryland, said : "I will not 
attempt to eulogize the dead, but I cannot re- 
frain from saying that I have never known one 
who more deservedly and universally possessed 
the esteem of all who knew him." 

For several years after my father's death we 
were all kept at home. My mother had secured 
a most excellent governess, a Miss Boyce, who 
proved most satisfactory and was liked so much 
that she soon became part of our household. 

At the age of about 1 5 I was sent to the Pre- 
paratory School of St. John's College. In 1856 
my mother and sisters concluded that it was 
best for me to go to a boarding-school, and the 
Lawrenceville High School, near Princeton, 
New Jersey, was selected. 

I shall never cease being grateful to my dear 
mother for sending me to this school. At the 
head of it was a very distinguished educator, 




xu 

Dr. Samuel Hamill, well known throughout the 
country, and the best man I ever knew to train 
boys in the way they should go. 

I graduated at Lawrenceville during the fall 
of 1859, and from there went to the University 
of Virginia. 

At the outbreak of the Civil War, 1861, I en- 
listed as a private soldier in the Confederate 
Army. 

"All things have worked together for my 
good." 



REMINISCENCES OF FOUR YEARS 
AS A PRIVATE SOLDIER 

CHAPTER I 

It was forty-two years ago last spring since 
the first mutterings of the Civil War alarmed 
the country. Already several of the Southern 
States had withdrawn from the Union, and in 
the early part of 1861 it was evident that oth- 
ers would soon follow. 

As I was born a Marylander, my early edu- 
cation and training pointed in one direction. 
My family for many years, especially on ;ny 
mother's side, had owned slaves, and I had 
never been taught to believe that slavery was a 
sin or a crime. All my early sympathies and 
associations were decidedly averse from these 
opinions. 

Therefore, when the question as to the right 
of these States to separate peaceably from the 
compact formed by their forefathers was resist- 
ed and denied by one section of the country, I 



14 

was not long in deciding the question for my- 
self. I determined at once which cause to es- 
pouse, and to take up arms to defend it. I was 
a mere boy at the time, scarcely nineteen years 
of age. Two years before my mother had sent 
me to the University of Virginia, hoping that 
my education would some day fit me, in some 
small degree, to follow in the footsteps of my 
illustrious father, who, although dead ten years 
before the outbreak of the war, had left behind 
him an enviable reputation for high character 
and distinguished services to his State as a jur- 
ist and useful citizen. 

While at the University I formed many 
early attachments, especially among the South- 
ern students, and when the issue arose I felt 
their destiny to be my destiny. Oh, how bright 
and happy were the days preceding the war ! 
what pleasant associations still ring out from 
those old University walls ! How little did we 
know, or how little did we think what a change 
would soon take place; what the magnitude of 
that change would be ! Some predicted a short 
war; the issue would soon be settled in a few 
months. Others shook their heads and looked 



15 

aghast at the prospect before them. Well, the 
war lasted four years, four long, dreary years, 
years of trials and hardships unequaled in the 
annals of war. 

We were told when we were school-boys that 
our forefathers in the struggle for American 
independence, suffered and endured every pri- 
vation, but when I compare the events of these 
two epochs, I question very much if their trials 
were greater than ours ; at least I hope not. 

The country was now thoroughly aroused. 
Fort Sumter had been fired upon, and both 
sides were calling for volunteers. Mr. Lincoln 
had issued his proclamation for 75,000 troops. 
The South was not idle. The call to arms was 
heard throughout the land. 

On the part of tlie North, troops were being 
rapidly moved forward to Washington to de- 
fend the National Capital. The Southerners 
were concentrating in the vicinity of Richmond, 
Virginia, to defend that city, which was to be- 
come the capital of the new Confederacy. 

I had returned to Baltimore, and found great 
excitement throughout the State. In an effort 
to pass Northern soldiers through the city, men 



i6 



of Southern sympathy arose and organized to 
resist. On the 19th of April, 1861, the 6th 
Massachusetts Regiment, which was marching 
up Pratt street from the President Street Sta- 
tion to the B. & O. depot, were fired upon and 
severely handled by an excited mob. Maryland 
was now thoroughly aroused and realized that 
all State rights were ignored by the general 
government, and if not already she would soon 
be under bayonet rule. 

There was a general call to arms, and troops 
were sent to the Susquehanna to destroy the 
bridge over that river. Every obstacle was de- 
vised to retard Northern troops reaching Wash- 
ington. I became a member ©f the Maryland 
guard. We were drilled day and night to get 
ready to fight and resist any further attempt to 
pass soldiers through the State. While this was 
going on, a large body of troops was being 
transported from Havre de Grace by water to 
Annapolis, and thence by rail to Washington. 
In this way, in a short time, Maryland had a 
large hostile army to hold her in subjection, and 
those of her sons who were still ready to fight 
for her soon realized that they could fight only 



17 

by removing the seat of war south of the Poto- 
mac river. 

I concluded at once to start south. The first 
thing to do was to go to AnnapoHs, the place 
of my birth, my old home, and say good-bye to 
my mother and sister, who were supposed to be 
still there. I had had no communication with 
them for a week or ten days, and took it for 
granted that they were at home. Imagine my 
deep regret, therefore, upon arriving at Annap- 
olis, to find that they had left the city on one of 
the Government transports bound for New 
London. Many citizens of Annapolis, espe- 
cially those connected with the army and navy, 
had availed themselves of this opportunity to 
remove their families to a place of safety and 
far away from the seat of war. 

My mother and sister had many friends 
among the of^cers of the Navy, and it was 
through the kindness of Captain Joseph Miller 
that they were cared for in this good manner. 

What a crushing blow to me not to see my 
dear mother! But it has often occurred to me 
since that it was just as well that we did not 
meet, as the parting would have been heart- 



i8 



breaking in the extreme. This was about May 
the 1st, when most of my friends and relatives 
had fled from the city. I ventured, however, 
before getting my horse, which had been en- 
gaged at a Hvery stable, to go down to the 
Academy, to say farewell to some of my old 
friends and inform them of my intentions, 
some of whom I should never see again. 

I shall never forget that night. Notwithstand- 
ing the fact that I was soon to take up arms 
against the Government, these old friends were 
friends still, and it was trying to break the cord 
which had so long united us in friendly and so- 
cial intercourse. 

Midnight was rapidly approaching when I 
went to the stable, and mounting my horse rode 
away to South river. On coming to the ferry, 
the ferryman of course was asleep and no boat 
was crossing at that hour. However, I soon 
roused him up, and he knew, without asking 
me, what I was after and what I was doing. I 
paid him the ferriage, and said good-bye. I 
think he would have been delighted to go with 
me, but we exchanged very few remarks about 
the war. 



19 

I rode on to Cedar Park, the ancestral home 
of the Mercers. Arriving there early in the 
morning, some hours before breakfast, I had 
time to put up my horse and prepare myself a 
little before being presented to the ladies. 

In regard to West river, there are very few 
people in Maryland today who can recall what 
West river was before the war. It was a thick- 
ly settled agricultural and aristocratic, neighbor- 
hood, situated between Rhodes and West rivers, 
forming a peninsula, and the land was owned 
by some of the most cultivated and attractive 
people in the State, containing some of the old- 
est families: the Mercers, Markoes, Hughes, 
Maxcys, Deales, Contees, Steuarts, Chestons, 
Murrays, Brogdens, Sellmans, Steeles and 
Franklins. Some of the estates were extremely 
well kept, and were the frequent scenes of great 
social gatherings at certain seasons of the year. 
Cedar Park was particularly noted for its hos- 
pitaHty and charming daughters. 

As before stated, I had arrived early in the 
morning and was already standing in the hall 
when first to welcome me appeared the charm- 
ing hostess of the house, Mrs. Mercer. She 



20 



was soon followed by her two daughters, Miss 
Sophie and Miss Mary, together with Miss Jen- 
nie Swann, daughter of ex-Governor Swann of 
Maryland, and Miss Markoe, a sister of the 
present Colonel Frank Markoe of the 5th 
Maryland Regiment. And what a welcome it 
was ! They all knew the disturbed condition of 
the country, and especially the condition of af- 
fairs in Baltimore, and insisted at once that I 
should make my stay at Cedar Park as long 
as possible. Under the circumstances, this 
was not hard to do, but it was hard to get away 
when once fixed there, particularly from such 
irresistible and charming young women. 

Well, at breakfast, when the servants retired 
from the room ( and those were good, old slave 
days in Maryland when the darkey knew his 
place, when it was the custom for the servants 
to retire after the breakfast had been placed 
upon the table), I soon informed them of my 
plans, and that in a few days I expected to 
gather together several young men in the 
neighborhood and start for the South. 

I was not long in securing recruits. Jim Mc- 
Caleb, Harry Stuart, together with two young 



21 



men, one by the name of Owens and the other 
Jones, and myself, formed a party of five. This 
was about the 5th or 6th of May. We arrang- 
ed to start on our march the following night. 
Each of us possessed a good horse and a Colt 's 
revolver. By appointment we all met at our 
rendezvous, and rode away through Anne 
Arundel County until we reached the beautiful 
old home of Doctor Richard Stuart, historic- 
ally known as Dodan, novv^ the home of a Cath- 
olic sisterhood. 

Doctor Stuart's family were rebels by inherit- 
ance, and there w?is no attempt to disguise this 
fact on the part of anyone. We all sat down to 
a glorious Maryland supper, and only left late 
in the evening with God's blessing upon our 
heads. We soon crossed the line of Anne Arun- 
del into Prince George's and rode to the home 
of Captain John Contee, a retired U. S. Naval 
officer. It was with some difficulty that we 
rapped the old Captain up at that hour of the 
night. He, however, put his head out of the 
window and we invited him down to meet us. 
He was a thorough Maryland gentleman of the 
old school, and before making any inquiry as to 



22 



our plans and movements, he invited us to join 
him in a glass of whisky and water. 

His beautiful daughter, Miss Florence, soon 
put in an appearance. It was just two o'clock 
in the morning, and in a few minutes we were 
again sitting down to a healthful repast of cold 
meat, cold bread and butter, pickles, whisky, 
milk, etc. 

The Captain had already asked us to take 
several drinks in the short space of fifteen min- 
utes, and we were all fast getting into a happy 
frame of mind. When we told the Captain we 
were going South, he said : ''Gentlemen, you 
know I am a retired naval officer, and having 
served my country so long, I shall continue to 
uphold the flag. I would advise you young men 
to retrace your steps and return to your homes." 
Miss Florence held opposite views, and she was 
loud in her exclamations of praise that we were 
on our way to fight for the South. 

I soon found we were tarrying too long, 
being too hospitably treated. We indulged 
again in the Captain's good whisky, and when 
we mounted and said good-bye, we were pre- 
pared to oppose anything that came in our way. 



23 

The sun was rising- on a bright May Sabbath 
morn as we rode into Laurel, a small village on 
the line of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. 

Our itinerary directed us to take the road to 
Rockville, Montgomery County, but just out- 
side of Laurel, and after having crossed the 
railroad track, we were met by a man driving a 
wagon, who informed us that a Yankee regi- 
ment had just encamped at Rockville about 
eight miles away, and that if it was our inten- 
tion to pass through that town we had better 
scatter. It was very evident that we could not 
keep together, and after a short conference we 
decided that two would take the open country 
to the left, two the open country to the right, 
and that I should continue on the main road, 
going through the town, as originally designed, 
and join the others that evening at Claggett's 
Ford. 

Just as I was entering the town of Rockville, 
I fancied I would escape the notice of the 
troops, but I had scarcely moved a step further 
when I saw several officers sitting on the fence 
on both sides of the road. There was nothing 
to do but to ride straight on. I passed through 



24 



them and bowed graciously, when one of the of- 
ficers cried, "Will you sell that horse?" I was 
quite equal to the occasion, and replied, ''Yes, 
I will on my return. I am on my way to pay a 
visit to Major Peters, who lives a few miles up 
the road. I expect to come back this way Wed- 
nesday, and will sell you the horse if you will 
give me $250 for him." Of course, I changed 
my mind and never came back. A fib, under 
such circumstances, was excusable. 

I was not further molested, and after riding 
a couple of miles I reached Claggett's house, 
and from there was directed to Claggett's Ford. 
I was surprised to find my comrades already 
there, and as it was getting quite dark we ar- 
ranged to spend the night in the culvert under 
the Chesapeake & Ohio canal. 

It was through this culvert that we were to 
reach the river in the morning, an unfrequented 
route across the Potomac. We had been ad- 
vised that it was but seldom used. 

We realized that we should have to sleep eith- 
er on the banks of the river that night or under 
the culvert, when suddenly, to our great sur- 
prise, we heard a cry of a sentinel on the tow- 



25 



path "All's well". This went through us like a 
shot; it necessitated absolute silence on our 
part; so that we were obliged to stand by our 
horses' heads to prevent them from neighing. 

It was a long and tiresome night, especially 
for young men who had had so little experience 
in such matters. The day was breaking when 
a question arose in our minds what to do with 
the sentinel. We must either shoot or capture 
him to avoid a general alarm before we crossed 
over the river. This question had to be decided 
at once, as the day was breaking rapidly. We 
made Jim McCaleb our Captain, and he, being 
a resolute chap, ordered Harry Stuart to creep 
up the canal bank, with orders either to capture 
or kill the sentinel. 

We waited some time in dread suspense, ex- 
pecting every minute to hear the crack of Stu- 
art's revolver, but not a sound was heard. Stu- 
art finally crawled back into the culvert and 
said, ''The pickets that we heard during the 
night have all been called in." Evidently they 
were on duty at night but relieved during the 
day. We were all very thankful to have mat- 
ters take this shape, and no one was hurt. W^e 



26 



should have deeply regretted taking the life of a 
soldier or picket under such circumstances. 

There was no time to be lost. We were at 
once in the saddle, on the river's bank, into the 
water, plunging and swimming through rocks 
and holes, pressing on to the Virginia side. 

In a few minutes more we safely landed. We 
got breakfast at a farmer's house, and after- 
wards he directed us on the road to Leesburg. 
We were wet to the skin. Without waiting to 
dry our clothes, and having no change with us, 
we pushed on. 

On our arrival rooms were engaged at Pick- 
ett's hotel, and our horses were stabled for the 
night. We had fires made in our rooms and 
dried our clothes. In a short while we were in 
presentable shape. 

We went out to see the sights and talk to the 
people. No introduction was needed. The fact 
that we were Marylanders and had come over 
to fight for Virginia gave us a hearty and hos- 
pitable welcome from all the citizens. 

Leesburg was always noted for her pretty 
women, and we had a very pleasant evening 
with a great many of them. We were the re- 



27 

cipients of much hospitality. Unfortunately 
the next day I fell sick, just as sick as I could 
be. I had evidently caught cold crossing the 
river, together with exposure to the heat, drink- 
ing and eating imprudently, doing everything 
in fact I ought not to have done, which resulted 
in a violent attack of dysentery. The country 
doctor was called in, and I was ordered imme- 
diately to bed to remain there until told by him 
to get up. 

That very night, about midnight, cries were 
heard in the streets, people rushing to and fro 
and great excitement prevailing everywhere. 
The report had come into the town that the 
Yankees had crossed the Potomac at Edwards's 
Ferry in large force, and that a company of 
Maryland cavalry, commanded by Captain 
Gaither, then picketed at that point, were 
being rapidly driven in, and were retreating on 
the town. This, of course, started a panic in 
Leesburg. The houses were deserted, the hotel 
abandoned, the stables emptied, and no one re- 
mained with me but my faithful friend Mc- 
Caleb, who declared he would not desert me no 
matter what happened. 



28 



He came into my room and sat down by my 
side, both of us momentarily expecting the 
Yankees to enter the room. Hour after hour 
we waited without closing our eyes. 

It proved a false alarm. The next morning I 
said to McCaleb : "Jin^^ I think with a little 
breakfast, I should feel better, and perhaps later 
in the day we could start on our way to join 
Ashby's cavalry. Go down stairs, old fellow, 
and see if our horses have been fed, and send 
me up some breakfast." McCaleb was not long 
gone. I could see by his expression that there 
was something to worry him more than Yan- 
kees. Almost breathless, he exclaimed, ''Our 
horses have been stolen; there is no food 
in the kitchen and nothing for break- 
fast." I really felt like giving up the ghost, to 
lose that splendid horse of mine, for which 1 
had so recently given $250 in gold, which 
money I had been a long time accumulating. It 
was enough to break a young cavalier's heart, 
to see his ambition shattered in this way. This 
noble charger was stolen from the stable that 
night by some comrade or Confederate, and I 
have never, from that day to this, found a trace 



29 



of him. All my plans and hopes to join Ash- 
by's command were at an end. As I had no 
money excepting a few dollars left in my pocket 
and was weak and sick, McCaleb and I were 
sorely perplexed to determine what was next 
best to do ; our disappointment was so keen that 
we almost cried. We knew that we should 
make cavalry soldiers, because we had been ac- 
customed from our early youth to ride all kinds 
of horses, and we felt that under Ashby we 
should soon make records for ourselves. 

But, as already stated, we were nearly out of 
money, had no one to vouch for us in any way, 
and there was nothing left to do but to buy a 
ticket to Richmond, and join the Maryland In- 
fantry then organizing at that point. 



CHAPTER II 

We had to take a rather circuitous route in 
those da3^s to reach Richmond, — ^by stage from 
Leesburg to Warrenton, a distance of forty 
miles, and by rail from Warrenton to Rich- 
mond. 

On our arrival at Richmond, we put up at 
the Spottswood Hotel. Here I found a large 
number of Marylanders as undecided as our- 
selves as to what command they would join. 

Captain William H. Murray, formerly con- 
nected with the Maryland Guard in Baltimore, 
was at Camp Lee recruiting. This company 
was being made up entirely of Marylanders. 
Captain Murray was eminently qualified to 
command the company. He was a good tacti- 
cian, had been connected with the Guard in 
Baltimore for some years, and with the material 
he would gather around him there was no ques- 



31 

tion but that he would organize a notable com- 
mand. 

I must not forget to say that my dear friend 
McCaleb left me at this time, and we never met 
again. He went to the far South to visit rela- 
tives, afterwards joined the Texas army, and 
was shot in one of the Trans-Mississippi bat- 
tles. 

There was nothing left for me to do but to 
join Murray's Company, which I did, and was 
duly enlisted into the Confederate service on 
May 17, 1 86 1, to serve one year. We had daily 
drills and exercises until the Company was fully 
organized. 

We were then ordered to Winchester, Va., to 
meet other Maryland companies, forming at 
different points to make up the First Maryland 
Confederate Regiment. Col. Arnold Elzey, of 
the old army, was with us at Camp Lee, and it 
was understood that he should command the 
regiment then organizing. 

Captain George H. Steuart, a gallant son of 
Maryland, a graduate of West Point as well as 
a young officer who had seen considerable serv- 
ice in fighting the Indians, was to be our Lieut.- 



32 



Colonel. Bradley T. Johnson, of Frederick, a 
young lawyer, was to be the Major. Proba- 
bly there was no regiment in the service that 
started out under brighter auspices or with bet- 
ter officer than the First Maryland. 

The different companies came together at 
Winchester and were mustered into service to 
serve for twelve months. It made very little 
difference to the men who were to command 
them, provided the officers were all Maryland- 
ers. 

We can all say with much pride that Elzey, 
Steuart and Johnson maintained throughout 
the war the highest distinction for bravery and 
soldierly conduct. Elzey and Steuart rose to be 
Major-Generals, and Johnson, although only a 
civilian, soon rose with distinction to the rank 
of Brigadier-General. His military career was 
phenomenal, and to have had Lee, Joe Johnston 
and Jackson compliment him on the field was 
no small honor ; he was recognized as a soldier 
most gallant and distinguished in the service of 
the South. 

The 1st Maryland was put into a brigade 
composed of the 3d Tennessee, the 13th Vir- 



33 



ginia and the loth Virginia, under command of 
General Kirby Smith. 

General Patterson, commanding the Federal 
forces, was organizing an army in the vicinity 
of Hagerstown, and was reported to have 
crossed the Potomac near Falling Waters, and 
to be marching toward Bunker Hill to engage 
our little army. 

Col. Jackson, afterwards known as '^Stone- 
wall," was sent forward to reconnoitre and re- 
port Patterson's position. Jackson simply felt 
the enemy, capturing only a few prisoners, and 
no decisive engagement took place. He accom- 
plished, however, the object of his mission, 
which gave General Johnston an insight into 
Patterson's whereabouts, and no doubt other 
valuable information in regard to the strength 
of his army. 

We had already moved up ten miles north of 
Winchester to a small village named Darkes- 
ville. Here we celebrated the 4th of July, '61. 
We were drawn up in line of battle, expecting 
Patterson to come out and give us fight. 

It was on this day that I remember having 
received the first letters from home, one from 



34 



my dear mother and another from my aunt. My 
mother's letter was terribly sad, a message from 
a heart-broken woman. My aunt, who had bit- 
terly opposed my going South and taking up 
arms against the Union, was not long in chang- 
ing her views and her opinion of the question 
before the country. In her letter to me she said, 
''My nephew, I honor you for your self-sacri- 
fice." 

General Johnston rode down the line of bat- 
tle on the Fourth of July, and stopping in front 
of our regiment said to Col. Elzey, "li your 
men fight as well as they yell, I expect good 
service of them." We remained in line of bat- 
tle for several days, but each day Patterson de- 
clined to fight. It was hard and most depress- 
ing to stand out in the broiling sun without 
shelter of any kind, waiting for a clash with the 
enemy. We held a good position and were anx- 
ious to have Patterson attack us. 

General Patterson displayed more military 
ability than we had given him credit for. In- 
stead of attacking us in front, he made a detour 
to the left, and tried to outflank us. Johnston 
was on the alert and fell back toward Winches- 



35 



ter, again taking up his original position, which 
was stronger and nearer our base of supplies. 

We were kept busy in throwing up breast- 
works and mounting heavy guns, which was all 
good training, besides picketing on the out- 
posts. 

These experiences were rapidly forming us 
into good, raw troops and preparing us for the 
great conflict so near at hand, but which we lit- 
tle dreamed of. 

On the 17th of July orders were received to 
break camp and prepare to march. As is the 
case with all raw troops, they think they know 
as much as their commanders, and if orders 
don't suit them, they are not inclined to obey 
them. There was quite a disposition to mutiny 
throughout the army when the different regi- 
ments moved into the turnpike, to find that the 
order was to march to the right instead of to 
the left. To march to the right was to march 
away from the enemy, and at the moment it 
looked like a further retreat. 

We were not long in suspense. A general 
order was read to the army that General Beau- 
regard, at Manassas, was threatened by an 



36 



overwhelming force of the enemy under Gen- 
eral McDowell, and we were marching to his 
support, and every soldier was instructed to 
step out. This settled the question at once. I 
never saw men march before or since the war 
with such alacrity. Every soldier was in his 
place ; not a laggard in the line. So we pressed 
on to the Shenandoah, marching all night long 
and reaching the river at early dawn. 

We went into the river, up to our necks, with 
our guns and ammunition raised over our 
heads, and the current was so swift that some 
of us locked arms to support each other. I re- 
member that Southgate Lemmon and Tom 
Levering, my comrades, helped me across the 
river, and their assistance was very needful, 
otherwise I might have gone down. The march 
continued with wet clothes through Upperville 
to Piedmont Station, on the Manassas Gap 
Railroad. We encamped along the line of the 
road late Saturday night, July 20th, 1861. 

McDowell's army at Centreville, moving on 
Manassas, took position for the battle the fol- 
lowing day. We were all eager for a fight. 
Every man was in position, and all orders were 



37 

cheerfully obeyed. We slept a little that night, 
but before 3 A. M. Sunday we were up and 
crowding into cars for a trip to the plains of 
Manassas. Our regiment, in fact our brigade, 
was the last to leave. 

The fight had already begun. We could hear 
the cannon roar. The train which conveyed us 
stopped within three miles of Manassas Junc- 
tion, about I o'clock on that hot Sabbath day. 

The line was immediately formed, and a 
rapid march began in a northwesterly direction, 
to be in touch with the extreme left of our line. 
The heat was intense. Through ploughed 
fields and dusty roads we marched. No doubt 
the enemy was made aware of our coming in 
this way. As we came near the order was given 
to ''double quick." 

General Smith said : "Boys, if you double 
quick, you will still have a chance to get in the 
fight." We knew that we were nearing the bat- 
tle-field, as the dead and wounded could be seen 
and heard on each side of us. Many said we 
were whipped; others said, ''Go in boys, give 
them hell." 



38 



The arrival of Kirby Smith's brigade was 
most timely. Jackson had been wounded. Bee 
and Bartow fighting at the head of their reg- 
iments against desperate odds, had fallen dead 
at their posts. General Smith repeated the 
command ''Step lively, boys, and we will be in 
time yet for a fight." So on we swept, cheer 
after cheer, marching with the thermometer at 
nearly 105, no water, tongues parched with red 
clay, when we came to a little stream where 
horses had fallen dead during the day; the 
water was already colored with blood, but we 
sipped it up as a refreshing beverage. 

We were moved up rapidly. It was just at 
this point that the first bullet from the enemy 
shot a member of Company C, John Berryman. 
The shot was fired from a regiment of Brook- 
lyn Zouaves, that, under cover, fired a volley 
into us, wounding several men, but, compara- 
tively speaking, doing but little damage. We 
here formed into line and returned this fire, 
driving the enemy from cover. General Smith 
was in the act of forming His brigade into line 
of battle when he was shot and fell from his 
horse. This was the first real live soldier that I 



39 

had seen shot and fall from a horse, and of 
course I thought he was dead. He lived, how- 
ever, to achieve an enviable reputation as a sol- 
dier, as well as a distinguished citizen and edu- 
cator of the young men of the South. 

Col. Elzey, the senior Colonel, took command 
of the brigade. We moved on, steadily feeling 
the enemy in our front. We were ordered to lie 
down for a moment, until the artillery, under 
Lieut. Beckham, could take position on our left. 

The artillery, concealed in the woods, opened 
a rapid and effective fire, creating havoc and 
confusion, when the order came for us to fix 
bayonets and charge. The enemy's line of bat- 
tle, the extreme right of the Federal army, held 
quite a good position, well placed on the crest 
of a hill. We could see the color-bearer waving 
the star-spangled banner, and the enemy appar- 
ently eager for a fight. Then the order came 
again to us to charge, and charge we did, 
straight up the hill in the face of the enemy. It 
surprised me very much that those fellows 
should have fired over our heads and wounded 
so few of us. In a moment more we had broken 
their lines and captured many prisoners. 



40 



The color-bearer just referred to, poor fel- 
low, was shot, and as we passed over his body 
we saw that he had entwined himself in the 
American flag. Our men, one and all, had a 
kind word for the gallant soldier. I think he 
came from the State of Maine. His regiment, 
in my opinion could have stayed there a little 
longer. Changing our front obliquely to the 
right, we could see the enemy in full retreat. 
There is no question but that the timely arrival 
of Kirby Smith's brigade had a most important 
influence in determining the result of that day, 
and General Smith goes down in history as the 
Blucher. 

It was getting late in the afternoon, and no 
orders to pursue the enemy had been received. 
Colonel Elzey moved a portion of the brigade, 
including our regiment, to a point where the 
fight had been hottest, and where we saw two 
regular batteries of artillery completely annihi- 
lated, horses and men lying piled up dead and 
no one left but an old cannoneer, still standing 
by his gun ready to load. It was just at this 
point that Beauregard rode up and promoted 
Elzey on the field to be a Brigadier-General. I 



41 



have participated in and seen a great many 
battles since that fight, especially Cold Harbor, 
Gettysburg, Spottsylvania, and I might men- 
tion others, but for a short distance along the 
line, the slaughter of the enemy was as appall- 
ing as anything I witnessed during the war. 

The fighting had been terrific in front of 
Jackson, and down Bee's and Bartow's lines. 
The contending forces along this position had, 
on several occasions during the day, crossed 
bayonets. McHenry Howard and I tried to do 
something to alleviate the sufferings of the 
wounded. I remember offering my canteen to 
some of the poor Federals and was surprised to 
find that their minds were so poisoned against 
Southerners as to think we desired to give them 
poison to drink. It was necessary to drink the 
water from the canteen first myself before I 
could restore confidence in these dying men, 
and then they gasped, ''Thank God, thank 
God !" 

We went into camp several miles from the 
stone bridge. It had been a hard and rough 
day. We had had nothing to eat, and no 
rations were issued until noon of the next day ; 



42 



but we all sank down to rest that night with 
thankful hearts that death had not come to us. 

It was our first battle, and although our 
regiment had not been hotly engaged at any 
time, still its behavior had been such as to es- 
tablish a mutual confidence of man to man that 
the right stuff was there, and we should be 
heard from whenever the occasion required. 

From this time until the following spring 
there were no battles fought ; it was mere rou- 
tine camp duty with occasional skirmishes on 
the picket-line. I shall not attempt to describe 
the experiences of camp life and other events 
incident to the life of a private soldier during 
this period. 



CHAPTER III 

The early autumn of 1861 was spent in the 
vicinity of Fairfax C. H. With no enemy near, 
many of the soldiers were permitted to visit 
the farmers' and officers' houses, and in this 
way we formed very pleasant acquaintances and 
associations. The life, however, was saddened 
by the sanitary condition of the army. In fact, 
the whole army was infected with all manner 
of diseases — fever, measles, whooping-cough, 
but particularly typhoid fever. 

I think it was in the early part of September 
that I was stricken down with typhoid fever. 
I was ill for more than nine weeks. Most of the 
time I lay on the hard ground, receiving very 
little attention from anybody. My life was al- 
most despaired of, and no doubt I should have 
died but for a providential occurrence. 



44 



I asked my doctor one morning what were 
my chances of recovery, and his reply was not 
cheerful. I said to him, ''Doctor, if you will 
only take me to a house, strip me of these vile 
clothes filled with vermin and put me in a clean 
bed, I shall live." The Lord was truly merciful 
to me, for on the very day of this conversation 
a messenger, as it were, arrived in the form of 
a gentleman from Fauquier County, Virginia, 
who came in his carriage to take a few of the 
sick soldiers to his home. 

He said he had come specially to look after 
the sick Marylanders, who had no homes in his 
country, and the Doctor and officers of my com- 
pany singled me out as one of the sickest in the 
camp. I was put on a couch and carried by 
four faithful comrades to the station, and from 
there conveyed in an open freight car some thir- 
ty miles to Piedmont Station on the Manassas 
Gap Railroad. 

I reached there late in the afternoon to find 
an ox-cart with a mattress in the bottom, to 
carry me to Bollingbrook, the beautiful estate 
of Mr. Robert Boiling, of Fauquier County, Va. 
The old ox-cart, although it had a mattress, 



45 

gave me a good jolting, as may be imagined, 
before arriving at his house. 

In fact; I may say I was nearly dead when I 
got there. The good servants carried me in 
their arms to a room on the second floor. Here 
they stripped off the old clothes from my body, 
and with hot water and alcohol bathed my bed 
sores. I was almost a Lazarus. A nice clean 
night-shirt was put on, and a glass of old Port 
revived my waning spirits, and just before the 
tea-bell rang I found myself in a comfortable 
bed surrounded by genuine Virginia hospitality, 
and refined, sympathetic people who were ready 
to make every sacrifice for my comfort. I fell 
asleep that night without my usual dose of 
morphia, and it was a sweet sleep, for during 
the night the fever left me, and I awoke in the 
morning feeling that a change had come over 
me. 

By careful nursing, day by day, I gradually 
grew^ better. The beautiful Miss Tabb Boiling, 
of Petersburg, Va., afterwards Mrs. Gen. Wm. 
F. H. Lee, and her cousin, Miss Anna Boiling, 
of Bollingbrook, were in constant attendance, 
and they did as much for me as a sister would 
do for a brother. 



46 



In the course of three weeks I was permitted 
to sit up, and a few days later I was taken down 
stairs for a comfortable seat on the porch. I 
was gaining strength rapidly, and looked for- 
ward to meeting my old comrades again in a 
few weeks. 

Let me stop here to say a word. The men 
from Maryland, away from their homes, espe- 
cially those who were sick (and most of them 
took their turn at it) owe an everlasting debt 
of gratitude to the women of Virginia. And 
what can we say about them? What splendid 
women they were! What self-sacrifices they 
endured, and with what heroism and courage 
they withstood the horrors of those terrible 
times ! 

I would mention here a long list of names of 
families kind to me during the war, but let a 
few suffice. The Boilings, McFarlands, Brax- 
tons, Alexanders, Stephensons, Pendletons, 
Buchanans, Dandridges, an(J Washingtons 
were only a few of the noble famihes to whom 
I owe a lasting gratitude, and whom I hope 
never to forget. 



47 

I remained at Bollingbrook until late in No- 
vember and then bade adieu to those charming 
surroundings, to return to my regiment en- 
camped at Manassas Junction. How pleasant 
it was to see the faces of my old comrades 
again ! There was Gres Hough, Nick Watkins, 
Sam Sindall, Frank Markoe, South Lemmon 
and others, whose names at the moment I can- 
not recall. They all greeted me most affection- 
ately. 

They had built a very comfortable log hut for 
the winter, and were living the lives of real sol- 
diers. I was soon at home and initiated into 
the mysteries of camp life once more. Several 
hours each day were devoted to camp exercises 
and drill, hunting wild turkeys, playing cards, 
and on Sunday some clergyman would come in 
and preach to the camp. 

I vividly recall Bishop Johns, of Virginia. 
He was interested in all the young men, and 
particularly in those from Maryland, and the 
men of the regiment were always glad to see 
him and listen to the gospel story as told by 
him. 



48 



Here in winter quarters we were working 
hard preparing for the opening of the spring 
campaign of 1862. 



CHAPTER IV 

We broke camp at Manassas early in March, 
1862, and retired to the Rappahannock River. 
Our brigade became now a part of Ewell's 
Division, Jackson's Corps, Army of Northern 
Virginia. The main army, under command of 
Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, continued its march 
towards Gordonsville, while our division re- 
mained on the Rappahannock. 

The weather was simply wretched, so much 
so that it was most difficult, in fact next to an 
impossibility, for the army to move. Here we 
remained about six weeks, when finally we re- 
ceived orders to cross the Blue Ridge and re- 
port to General Jackson in the Valley. General 
Jackson had about this time encountered the 
enemy at Kernstown, and while compelled to 
retire, he had made one of the most gallant 
fights of the war, overwhelmed as he was by 
superior numbers. 



50 

Our Division halted at Conrad's Store in the 
Luray Valley. To our great surprise, Jackson 
had gone when we arrived. The old story is 
that Ewell sat on the fence and cried because no 
one could tell him of Jackson's whereabouts. 
We could get no tidings of Jackson; no one 
knew where to find him ; his camp had been 
abandoned, and all that was known was that he 
had moved rapidly in the direction of Staunton, 
Va. 

Jackson had his plans, however, and was pre- 
paring to make another of his brilliant maneu- 
vers. A large Federal force under General Mil- 
roy was advancing towards McDowell in what 
is now West Virginia. This was a portion of 
Fremont's army, and Jackson, to carry out his 
plan of defeating Banks, at Winchester, must 
first destroy Milroy in Virginia. This move- 
ment was a success. He made a very rapid 
march, met the enemy and accomplished his 
purpose, retraced his steps as rapidly as possi- 
ble and rejoined Gen. Ewell. 

A part of Jackson's plan was to destroy 
Banks at Winchester, and carry out President 
Davis's and Gen. Johnston's scheme, — even if 



51 

it involved the withdrawal of a large body of 
troops from the peninsula, — and reach the 
North by way of the Valley, striking a sudden 
and heavy blow at some exposed position, 
capturing Washington if possible. 

These plans, however, never fully materi- 
alized. After the battle of McDowell, where 
the enemy had been repulsed at every point, 
and Jackson had driven them sufficiently to the 
rear to cover his own movement, he pressed on 
down the Valley. 

General Banks retired as rapidly as possible 
to Winchester, where the principal engagement 
of the campaign took place, resulting ultimately 
in a complete overthrow of the occupation of 
the Valley of Virginia by Northern troops. 

General Ewell moved from Conrad's Store 
to Front Royal, and Jackson from Harrison- 
burg to the same place. This movement began 
on May i8, 1862. As Ewell's Division ap- 
proached Front Royal, General Ewell was in- 
formed by the citizens that Col. Kenly, a Mary- 
lander, commanding about 1,000 Marylanders, 
with a battery of artillery, was in command at 
that point. 



52 



Our regiment that morning was bringing up 
the rear of Ewell's Division, when Gen. Ewell 
transmitted an order to Bradley T. Johnson, 
that it had been reported to him that the enemy 
in his front were Marylanders, and if we 
wished to meet Marylanders, to move our regi- 
ment to the front at once. 

The challenge was accepted immediately, and 
the whole army halted that we might take the 
front skirmish line, which position we held 
throughout the fight, and finally routed the 
enemy, our fellow citizens from Maryland. 

I forgot to mention that about this time the 
first year's service of the Maryland regiment 
had expired, and the men were entitled to an 
honorable discharge with privilege of re-enlist- 
ing, or entering other branches of the service. 

We were mustered out on the 17th day of 
May in accordance with law, but to the credit 
of the men be it stated that every man took his 
old place in the ranks, to participate in the 
glorious succession of victories which were to 
crown Jackson's campaign. 

The first fight took place at Front Royal, the 
1st Maryland leading the advance of Ewell's 



53 



Division. Colonel Kenly made a good fight 
and displayed conspicuous gallantry in the 
field, but he was over-matched. His conduct 
was the admiration of every soldier. He was 
captured with more than 600 prisoners. The 
last stand was made at the bridge over the 
Shenandoah River, and I distinctly recall one 
poor fellow who fell dead just as he turned to 
cross the bridge. He was in my immediate 
front. We were double-quicking and firing at 
the same time. I am not positive who killed 
him ; I am glad I am not able to say ; bullets 
were flying thick and fast. He was a well- 
dressed ofiicer, and as I came up to his dead 
body I could not resist relieving him of a 
long pair of cavalry boots which he wore. The 
temptation was too great and I could not let 
some one else make this important capture. I 
stooped down and relieved him of them, and 
found them to be of great service for months 
and months after, and especially when I joined 
the cavalry a few weeks later. 

Jackson and Ewell pressed on to Winchester. 
We were getting a good taste of Jackson's foot 
cavalry at that time, marching from 20 to 30 



54 

miles a day, and frequently without food of any 
kind. 

As is usual after typhoid fever, one grows 
fat; my weight reached i8o pounds, but after 
the Valley campaign, and marching some five 
or six hundred miles in forty days. I settled 
down to 136 pounds. I was never in better 
health or better fighting trim in my life. 

Just before the battle of Winchester, Jack- 
son called on Ewell for our brigade. We were 
placed under Jackson's immediate command on 
the extreme left. The other two brigades of 
Ewell's Division had gone into action on the 
right. 

We were held in reserve until the battle was 
well under way, when Elzey moved, left in rear, 
to turn, if possible, the enemy's right. 

General Gordon, of the Federal army, was in 
immediate command of Banks's forces in our 
front, and he must have been a soldier of some 
skill as he anticipated this movement and pre- 
vented the success which we had hoped for. 
They fired upon us at close range, but it did not 
check our advance. 



55 



Then it was that Dick Taylor, commanding 
the gallant Louisianians, rose suddenly from 
cover just to our right and the two brigades 
swept irresistibly forward, the Yankees giving 
way at every point. Jackson urged his men 
to press on to the Potomac, and our brigade led 
in the pursuit. The Northern troops were fall- 
ing in every direction. The fruits of this vic- 
tory, however, were lost, excepting the enor- 
mous supplies captured in Winchester, owing 
to the lack of disciplined cavalry. If Jackson 
had had cavalry, the entire army of Banks 
would have been captured before they reached 
the Potomac River. After the battle one al- 
most seemed compensated for risking his life, 
especially on an occasion like the taking of Win- 
chester, to see the people hail us as their deliv- 
erers. They were almost frantic with joy, and 
it is said that General Jackson smiled and asked 
a lady, "Who's been here since I've been gone?" 

We were all too tired to push the enemy and 
therefore they escaped to the Potomac. Next 
morning, however, we continued our march to 
Halltown, on the direct road to Harper's Ferry. 



56 



The afternoon of the day following we 
stormed Bolivar Heights, Gen. George H. 
Steuart being in command. This stronghold 
was held by a Yankee regiment, who were just 
sitting down to a sumptuous repast when we 
drove in their pickets, creating such confusion 
that the tables were all left spread with the sup- 
per untouched, so that we could sit down to fin- 
ish it ourselves. 

That regiment could have made a gallant de- 
fense, but for some reason they ^'skedaddled" 
at the sight of a rebel. We heartily enjoyed 
their supper. We captured a great many guns 
and much ammunition without the loss of a 
single man. That night we slept on the road- 
side with our faces towards Winchester. 

The order came before daybreak to marcli. 
We marched the entire day, through Winches- 
ter and Middletown on the road to Strasburg 
up to lo o'clock that night, covering a distance 
of 35 miles, and when we rested, we rested 
without food and with fence-rails for our pil- 
lows. 

Fortunately the wagons came up in the night 
and rations were issued at 5 o'clock the follow- 



57 



ing morning. We were soon again on the 
march, en route for Strasburg. We poor pri- 
vates knew very little of the danger that sur- 
rounded us. We afterwards learned that it 
was just touch and go whether or not the 
enemy had entrapped Jackson. 

Shields had crossed the Blue Ridge Moun- 
tain on the east, and marched from Front Royal 
towards Strasburg. Fremont was coming on 
from the west towards Wardensville on our 
right, and Banks, having learned of our retro- 
grade movement, had recrossed the Potomac, 
and, as he supposed, in conjunction with 
Shields, Milroy and Fremont, Jackson would 
be gobbled up, but the plan failed for lack of 
co-operation, and nobody knew better than 
Jackson how to take advantage of it. 

In another day our army was safe ; the com- 
bined forces of the Federal army were in our 
rear. We had marched 170 miles in eleven 
days, and engaged in two battles, Front Royal 
and Winchester, threatened on all sides by an 
army of 60,000 against 15,000 under Jackson. 
We whipped the enemy in detail, and trium- 
phantly escaped from them without losing a 
single wagon. 



58 



Jackson moved slowly up the Valley. His 
men were tired ; they needed rest and food ; but 
he was eternally vigilant awaiting an opportu- 
nity to fight. Quite a little skirmish occurred 
on June 6th, a few miles east of Harrisonburg. 
General Fremont had sent Percy Wyndham, 
with a large force of infantry and cavalry, to 
harass our rear. They met Colonel Turner 
Ashby, supported by the 58th Virginia Regi- 
ment. Ashby had been sent out to check any 
further advance. A severe fight ensued. Our 
line wavered, and Ashby, appealing to his men 
to charge, fell pierced through the heart, and in 
a moment everything was in confusion. 

It was just then that the ist Maryland, under 
Col. Bradley T. Johnson, came up in time to 
save the day. Col. Johnson gave the order to 
charge, and it was a charge that those who par- 
ticipated in it will never forget. Johnson led 
us to victory. We were close to the fire of the 
enemy, it being quite late in the evening, but 
this did not deter us. On went our regiment 
until it had routed the crack Pennsylvania 
Bucktails, capturing 287 prisoners, including 
Colonel Kane, their commander. We avenged 



59 

the death of Ashby. This was really the first 
good fight of our regiment. 

We saw many of our comrades fall, but the 
conduct of the m^en was simply superb, and 
General Ewell ordered that we should wear on 
our colors one of the captured ^'bucktails" as a 
trophy. 

The next day Gen. Ewell issued a general 
order, saying that it was due to the intrepid 
conduct of the ist Maryland Regiment that the 
death of Ashby had been avenged. I shall never 
forget that night : it was one of the saddest of 
the war. My friend Sam Sindall had been 
shot while resting his head on my knee just be- 
fore we were ordered to charge. 

Two days later we fought the battle of Cross 
Keys. Our company were deployed as skir- 
mishers. I was on the advance line for more 
than six hours, constantly under fire. 

We had issued to us 128 rounds of ammuni- 
tion, and when the fighting in the evening ended 
we had scarcely a cartridge left. We witnessed 
the fall of several of our best young men. Mc- 
Kenny White and Willie Colston were desper- 
ately wounded, and at the time there seemed 



6o 



little hope for their recovery, but they both sur- 
vived, the latter meeting a soldier's death at a 
later period. 

Gen. George H. Steuart received a grape shot 
in the shoulder, which disabled him for nearly 
six months. I received a slight scratch on the 
right cheek from a glancing ball, which prac- 
tically paralyzed my face for some weeks. The 
next day my cheek was perfectly black. I was 
struck just as I turned to pick up Lieut. Bean, 
of Company I, who had been standing imme- 
diately in my rear and was wounded in the foot. 
I had advised him the moment before to get 
away as he would certainly be struck, but he 
was a gallant fellow, and did not heed the warn- 
ing. 

I suffered from considerable nausea, pro- 
duced by this nervous shock, which continued 
the following day, and I was excused by my 
Captain from marching with the company; on 
this account I was not engaged in the battle of 
Port Republic. 

This was the last infantry fight in which T 
should have taken part. The next day our 
company went out of service, many of them re- 



6i 



ceiving staff appointments, some re-enlisting in 
the 2d Maryland Infantry, while others, like 
myself, joined the cavalry. 

I had served more than a year in the infan- 
try. 



CHAPTER V 

After the discharge from Murray's Com- 
pany, we marched with the army to Gordons- 
ville, and there I joined Company A, Mary- 
land Cavalry, Captain Ridgely Brown in com- 
mand, First Lieutenant Frank A. Bond, Sec- 
ond Lieutenant Thomas Griffith, Third Lieu- 
tenant Ventris Pue. 

I secured a few days leave of absence, and 
wxnt by train to Staunton to buy a horse. 
Succeeding in this, I returned at once to Gor- 
donsville. It would have been difficult indeed 
to have found a better cavalry organization 
than the one commanded by Captain Brown. 

The company was composed chiefly of men 
who had been in the infantry for a year, while 
quite a number of them had recently crossed 
the Potomac to espouse the cause of the South. 

We were temporarily attached to the Second 



63 



Virginia Cavalry, under Col, Thomas Mun- 
ford, a gallant and distinguished Virginian, 
who was particularly proud of his Maryland 
company, so much so that he placed us as the 
first company on the right. 

Here at Gordonsville General Jackson and 
his army were resting after the fatiguing Val- 
ley campaign. I was in camp, in the woods 
near General Jackson's headquarters, and while 
sitting on the fence one evening Captain Pen- 
dleton, of Jackson's staff, saw me and inquired 
if I should like to be detailed for courier duty. 
We had been old friends at the University of 
Virginia before the war, and Pendleton said : 
"Come over to Jackson's headquarters and re- 
port for courier duty." With the consent of 
my Captain, I soon got ready. 

General Jackson and staff w^re lodged in a 
large white farm-house, with a wooden porch 
in front, just outside of Gordonsville, and as 
I rode up I recognized the General walking up 
and down the porch. 

I told him that I had come to report to him 
for duty as a courier by order of Captain Pen- 
dleton, and was ready to receive any orders 



64 



he might give me. I had never spoken to Gen- 
eral Jackson before, although I had frequently 
seen him on the march and in the Valley. 

General Jackson's first order directed me to 
go to each Brigade headquarters and deliver to 
each commanding officer positive instructions to 
move their respective commands that evening 
not later than 9 o'clock on the road to Louisa 
C. H., and when in line to await further orders. 

I got back to headquarters about 10 o'clock. 
I had had some ten brigade commanders to 
interview, which was no easy task for a green 
courier like myself. I accomplished the work, 
however, and reported to General Jackson that 
the army was moving in accordance with his in- 
structions. He turned to me and asked if I had 
had anything to eat. I answered that I had 
not, when he said, ''Go down stairs in the din- 
ing-room of this house, and you will find my 
mess-chest. Get something out of it, and re- 
port to me at 5 o'clock in the morning." 

I enjoyed a hearty supper, and after feeding 
my horse, fell asleep on the porch, but was 
aroused in time to be in the saddle at the hour 
designated. 



65 



From that time on, until after the great bat- 
tles around Richmond, I was constantly in the 
saddle at the great General's side, and I feel that 
I at least rendered service quite equal, if not 
fully equal, to that of some of the members of 
his staff. I was with him on the march from 
Gordonsville to Louisa C. H., from Louisa 
C. H. to Hanover Junction, from Hanover 
Junction to Ashland, from Ashland on the 
road leading to Pole Green Church, endeavor- 
ing to form a line in touch with Hill's Divi- 
sion, then about attacking the enemy at Me- 
chanicsville. 

Jackson's corps bore constantly to the left, 
turning Beaver Dam Creek, moving en echelon 
towards old Cold Harbor. 

It was at the beginning of this engagement 
that I saw Jackson raise his hands to Heaven 
and pray for victory. Jackson hoped to strike 
the enemy in rear, and in conjunction with Hill, 
press him down the Chickahominy. Some 
confusion and delay prevented the success of 
this movement, and General Jackson has been 
criticised for undue delay in taking his proper 
position, but this question I shall not discuss. 



66 



because I know he had almost insurmountable 
obstacles to overcome. 

Jackson moved the next morning towards 
old Cold Harbor, supported by D. H. Hill's 
Division on his right and Stuart's Cavalry on 
his left. It was not until quite late in the after- 
noon, however, that Jackson, hearing the bat- 
tle raging along Longstreet's and Hill's front, 
pressed in and hotly engaged the enemy. 

Never before nor since have I witnessed such 
a scene. How I escaped being shot is still a 
mystery to me, and how my horse escaped is 
a still greater wonder. Jackson had me con- 
stantly '^on the go," carrying orders in every 
direction under fire along the entire line in 
which Hill's and Ewell's Divisions were en- 
gaged. 

The fight continued into dark night, and the 
greatest confusion ensued. I heard someone 
say the following morning that Jackson and 
all of his stafif had barely escaped capture. 

When it was quite dark, we encountered the 
enemy's outpost in front of us, and Jackson 
made us charge and capture the post of about 
twenty men. 



67 



We moved early the next morning towards 
Gaines's Mill, but owing to the destruction of 
a bridge, we were unable to arrive in time on 
that day to engage the enemy. Likewise, at 
the battle of Frazier's farm, we were prevented 
by the same reason. 

I had now been under fire almost constantly 
for five days. The battle of Frazier's farm oc- 
curred on the sixth day. The next morning I 
was more than gratified to see Colonel Mun- 
ford, the Colonel of my regiment, report for 
duty to General Jackson. They had just ar- 
rived from the Valley to rejoin the army. 

I asked Captain Pendleton to permit me to 
return to my Company, if my services were no 
longer needed. The request was granted, and 
thus I escaped the great and terrible clash of 
arms which took place the next morning at 
Malvern Hill. 

I had had enough of it for a time at least. 
Things did not look very pleasant for me 
around headquarters. General Jackson had 
been in a bad humor for several days ; the truth 
of the matter is that he and his men had been 
completely worn out by what they had gone 
through. 



68 



In this battle the Confederates lost 20,000 
men; Jackson's Corps almost half that num- 
ber, and no wonder he was troubled and mor- 
tified that, after so great a sacrifice, the enemy 
had escaped. 



CHAPTER VI 

The past year had been an extremely event- 
ful period in my life. It was a good thing to 
be thrown back on one's own resources. I be- 
gan to grow serious. How I escaped being 
killed or wounded during the recent terrific 
campaign has always been a wonder to me. I 
owe my life to a merciful Providence. 

I ascribe a great deal of my success in after 
life to the hardships and privations endured 
during the Civil War. Hardships set the mind 
free to discover, invent and plan. 

I professed my faith in God early in life, but 
I have never felt as though I were a good man, 
free from shortcomings and frivolities. After 
all the miraculous escapes during the war, 
every soldier should try to love God, and try to 
be the kind of man God would have him to be. 
I remember distinctly that I soliloquized upon 



70 

all this just after those terrible seven days' 
battles around Richmond. They set me to 
thinking ; I was a much better soldier after that 
experience. 

There was great rejoicing in Richmond and 
throughout the South after the defeat of Mc- 
Clellan, and after the safety of the Capital had 
been assured. 

Our regiment, the Second Virginia Cavalry, 
did not tarry near Richmond long. We were 
ordered to join Jackson's forces, a portion of 
which had already arrived at Gordonsville. 
This was just preceding the battle of Cedar 
Mountain. 

I cannot recall all that occurred in the early 
part of this campaign. I did not actively par- 
ticipate in this battle beyond the usual picket 
and flank duty. I knew that Jackson was pre- 
paring to force Pope's army across the Rap- 
pahannock, and no doubt there would be an- 
other great battle fought when General Lee 
came up with his main army. 

The cavalry, under Jeb Stuart, was harass- 
ing Pope's right flank. At midnight, one dark, 
stormy night, we captured Pope's headquarters 



71 



at Catlett's Station. This was a great ride. 
The streams were overflowing their banks. We 
approached the station from the direction of 
Warrenton while it was raining hard, and the 
men were drenched to the skin. It was just 
the weather for such sport. We swam two 
streams and reached the coveted spot about 
midnight. 

The camp was surprised by a dashing charge, 
and the entire command, numbering about 300 
prisoners, captured. 

We were very much amused the next morn- 
ing to see one of the men attired in General 
Pope's full-dress uniform. Pope himself es- 
caped only because he happened to be away 
that night. 

I have a very indistinct recollection of what 
occurred the following day. I know, how- 
ever, that we were moving in the direction of 
Manassas Junction, and Jackson's Corps was 
pressing on to get in Pope's rear, while the 
cavalry marched between, protecting Jackson's 
right flank. 

The object of the movement was, if possible, 
to cut off Pope and capture the vast supplies 



72 

which had been accumulated at Manassas Junc- 
tion. 

During the two or three days before the great 
battle of Second Bull Run was fought, we 
were constantly engaged in skirmishing and 
harassing the enemy. 

Colonel Henderson, in the "Life of Jack- 
son," described the cavalry fight which took 
place on the afternoon of the 30th of August as 
probably the most brilliant sabre charge in the 
war. 

My company, commanded by Capt. Ridgely 
Brown, — first company in front, Second Vir- 
ginia Cavalry, Army of Northern Virginia, — 
was Ordered to reconnoitre and report. 

General Lee was already pressing Pope's 
army, and Stuart's cavalry was stationed on 
the extreme right, ready to take advantage of 
any opportunity to charge the retreating 
enemy. We were not long in sending back 
word to Colonel Munford that several regi- 
ments of Federal cavalry were in our imme- 
diate front. Colonel Munford and his regi- 
ment came up at a dashing gait, forming front 
into line, our company on the right. 



73 



Colonel Broadhead, commanding the Sixth 
Michigan Cavalry, moved out to take the same 
position just in front of us. Here stood the 
two opposing regiments, within one hundred 
yards of each other, face to face. The excite- 
ment was intense. We were ordered to fight 
with sabres, and the command, ''Draw sabres, 
forward, trot, gallop, charge!" rang out from 
both commanders. 

Colonel Broadhead was killed and Colonel 
Munford received a sabre cut over the head. 
The two regiments locked sabres. Almost im- 
mediately support from both sides dashed into 
the fight. The dust and confusion became so 
great as to make it almost impossible to dis- 
tinguish friend from foe. 

I had joined the cavalry only a few weeks 
before, and it was my first cavalry fight. Un- 
fortunately for me, my sabre, a poor specimen 
of Confederate iron, was soon bent and quite 
useless. I was attacked by three Yankees. I 
was fighting for my life, when kindly aid 
came from one of my comrades by the name of 
Nelson, who cut down two of my opponents, 
and at the third I made a right cut which miss- 



74 

ed him, and which nearly unhorsed me. 
Scarcely recovering my seat, I saw an officer 
coming straight at me tierce-point. 

I had only a moment to gather my thoughts, 
and in that moment my pistol was levelled at 
him, to surrender or die. He threw up his 
hands and surrendered — horse, foot and drag- 
oon. He was an officer of one of the Michi- 
gan cavalry regiments. During the remainder 
of the war I rode in his saddle. His sabre I 
presented to my cousin, Capt. James Shaw^ 
Franklin, of the Second Maryland Infantry. 

I may here tell a story on my old friend. 
Bob Keene. His horse ran away in the charge, 
and it was not until late that night that he 
found his way back to camp, without horse, 
sword or hat, and said that, to escape being 
captured, he had crawled into a hollow tree, 
and had remained there until everything was 
quiet. 

Every word of this was true, for Bob 
Keene was a brave fellow, and it was not fear 
of the enemy that put him in this plight. 



75 



The following day Colonel Mimford's regi- 
ment moved to Leesburg. As soon as we got 
there we engaged the enemy in the streets. 
Meem's Partisan Rangers, numbering six hun- 
dred men, were routed and most of them cap- 
tured. I was fortunate in capturing a live 
Yankee and a good horse, ridding myself of the 
old scrub which I had purchased a few months 
before while at Staunton, Va. 

I was now well mounted and well equipped 
with Yankee sabre, Yankee saddle, Yankee 
boots and Yankee horse ? ready for the Mary- 
land campaign of 1862. 

Gen. Fitz Lee, in command of the Confeder- 
ate cavalry, preceded the army into Maryland. 
My company was still attached to the Second 
Virginia. We crossed the river at Edwards's 
Ferry, marching in the direction of Frederick 
City, taking up position in a little town called 
Urbana. 

We were to guard General Lee's right flank 
against any sudden attack of the enemy ap- 
proaching from the direction of Washington. 

Lee was concentrating his army in the vicin- 
ity of Frederick City, moving on the road to 



76 



Boonesboro' and Hagerstown, and crossing 
South Mountain at Crampton's Gap. Lee had 
sent Jackson by Turner's Gap to capture Har- 
per's Ferry, which was accompHshed in fine 
style. 

Our company was still attached to Munford's 
regiment, bringing up the rear of Lee's army. 
We all enjoyed the kindly reception received 
from the citizens of Frederick. They were hos- 
pitable and liberal in their donations of good 
things. 

Up to this time we had not been pressed by 
the enemy. In passing through Crampton's 
Gap, however, the Yankee cavalry overtook 
our regiment. They greatly outnumbered us; 
in fact, they were supported by Franklin's Di- 
vision of Infantry, and soon drove us from our 
position. We suffered severely in this fight. 
Lee's army was forming on the west bank of 
Antietam Creek, awaiting the return of Jack- 
son. McCldllan moved cautiously when he 
should have moved with great rapidity. Finally 
there ensued one of the most sanguinary and 
bloody battles of the war, — the battle of Antie- 
tam. 



77 



Our command in this fight occupied a posi- 
tion to the extreme right of the army, and while 
we witnessed a stubbornly contested struggle 
for two days, we were not actively engaged 
ourselves. We could, however, see the desper- 
ate fighting going on on both sides, without 
being exposed to it. 

Our army retired across the Potomac with- 
out being further molested by the enemy. On 
this march our company brought up the rear. 



CHAPTER VII 

On returning to Virginia we were ordered 
to take position near Snicker's Ferry, on the 
Shenandoah River, We picketed for some 
weeks on the river. 

Major Charles Lewis Hved near by, and, 
with his charming wife, entertained us most 
hospitably for the few weeks we were in the 
vicinity of the old Shenandoah Springs, quite 
a noted place in days gone by. 

Here we were enabled to give our horses a 
much needed rest, and we amused ourselves, 
when not on picket duty, by shooting par- 
tridges and different kinds of game. 

We were ordered from this point to Lees- 
burg, and arrived there one Sunday evening at 
dark. The girls were delighted to see this 
splendid regiment of Virginians and Mary- 
landers, and ran out of their houses to kiss our 



79 



horses, but I. will not say how many of the men 
kissed the girls. 

Capt. Frank A. Bond, in a recent letter to 
me, recalls the fact that my mess had a lot of 
pies made of preserves. We had ordered more 
pies than we could eat, and as we had to break 
camp the following morning, we invited the of- 
ficers to participate in our frugal repast. It 
was just at this time that I met with a very 
serious loss. My horse, which I valued very 
highly, developed a fistula, and I had to leave 
him to his fate. No one except a cavalryman 
knows how deeply one becomes attached to his 
animal, which has carried him safely through 
so many perilous and dangerous encounters in 
war. 

I abandoned him in a good field of grass, and 
I hope he finally got well, to render to some 
one else the same good service that he had done 
to me. 

We were now getting into the autumn 
months, beautiful October, and our company 
was encamped at Winchester, under command 
of Gen. George H. Steuart, who was subse- 
quently relieved by Gen. William E. Jones. 



8o 



For the past three months we had been the 
first company in front of the Second Virginia 
Cavalry, and during this time we had achieved 
a reputation quite enviable in the army. Col- 
onel Munford had frequently applauded our 
company for its conduct in battle, and we were 
loath to part from such good friends. 

There were, however, several Maryland com- 
panies organizing for the purpose of forming 
the First Maryland Battalion of Cavalry, and 
three of them came together at Winchester for 
this purpose, and elected our Captain, Ridgely 
Brown, major of the battalion. 

The weather continued beautiful, and we re- 
mained a while longer in the neighborhood of 
Winchester, picketing on the Romney road, at 
the gap in the mountains several miles away. 
Here we could get fine pheasant shooting, and 
in this way amused ourselves before going 
into winter quarters. After the first of Decem- 
ber we moved up the Valley near Edenburg. 

Here another company joined the battalion, 
and we went into permanent winter quarters. 
We had daily drills, and improvised a race- 



8i 



track. We had many exciting races, at other 
times played cards, etc. 

On one occasion two of my comrades, Gustav 
Lurman and Charlie Inloes, introduced a 
"vingt-et-un bank." The men were flush, hav- 
ing just been paid off. I had never seen the 
game played, but after watching it for a short 
time, I concluded to take a hand. I was most 
successful in all my ventures, winning upwards 
of $1,200 in Confederate money, which broke 
the bank for the time being. The next morn- 
ing, however, additional capital was secured, 
and the game started afresh, although I was 
not permitted to play, as they were afraid of 
my good luck. 

On January 2d, 1863, a bitter cold day, the 
whole brigade started on an expedition to 
Moorefield, marching all day and all night, 
crossing the mountains. Many men were frost- 
bitten. Both of my heels were badly nipped, but 
I soon recovered. We had expected to encoun- 
ter the enemy near Moorefield. The suffering 
of the men was intense, and General Jones be- 
came very unpopular for this movement. 



82 



On February 23d, our company, under com- 
mand of Captain Bond, was informed by one 
of Jones' scouts that a company of Yankee cav- 
alry, picketing near Winchester, could be easily 
captured. 

An expedition was made up, and we started 
on a cold, chilly afternoon, reckoning to reach 
the outlying pickets about midnight. Led by 
a faithful guide, we arrived at the expected 
time, and succeeded in working our way to 
the rear of the command, resulting in the cap- 
ture of the entire Yankee company. 

Accomplishing this, we started at a trot to 
get away with our prisoners. We felt sure the 
enemy would pursue, and, as expected, they 
were soon on our track. We quickened our pace 
from trot to gallop. Captain Bond, with 
the usual foresight of a good officer, dispatched 
two of his men to inform General Jones that 
one or two regiments were closing in on us, and 
to be ready to meet them when we came up. 

We were in no condition to fight after a gal- 
lop of nearly eighty-seven miles. General Jones 
had promptly ordered the Seventh Cavalry to 
mount, and before we reached New Market 



83 



they were moving down the turnpike, nicely 
closed up and ready for the charge. This was 
fun for the Virginians. 

Those who had been pursuing us through 
the night, without due regard to the risk of 
being attacked, had strung themselves out for 
miles along the pike, and the Virginians, com- 
ing out fresh and well closed up, soon made 
havoc among them, capturing, wounding and 
killing three hundred men. 

It was a most successful raid on our part, 
and Captain Bond was complimented for the 
manner in which he had handled the expedi- 
tion. 

It was while I was in winter quarters that I 
had the pleasure of making the acquaintance of 
Capt. George Blackford, one of Lee's most 
noted scouts, who was temporarily assigned to 
duty in the Valley of Virginia. 

Captain Blackford invited me to accompany 
him on a little expedition down the Valley, to 
capture a wagon-train of the enemy, which 
was in the habit of passing daily between Win- 
chester and Berryville. There were six of us 
in all, and we had been informed that five four- 



84 



horse teams, with a quartermaster, drivers and 
an escort of three cavalrymen, generally com- 
posed the party, and would pass a given point 
about 2 o'clock in the afternoon. 

On each side of the turnpike between Win- 
chester and Berryville, where it crosses the 
Opequon, the banks were very high. It was 
at this point that we concluded to make the at- 
tack. Our horses were securely tied in the 
woods, thirty or forty yards in our rear, and 
we crawled up to the crest of the hill, and, 
peeping over the banks, waited for the ap- 
proach of the wagon-train. 

We were not long in suspense. Captain 
Blackford had ordered three of us to fall upon 
the enemy in front, and three in rear, with 
cocked revolvers, and to shoot immediately if 
we met with any resistance. 

We captured the whole train. Each Yankee 
driver was ordered to lead out his team and 
three cavalrymen to dismount. A side road 
was within fifty yards of us, where we had tied 
our horses, and the whole party was away in a 

jiffy- 



85 



The wagons, with the suppHes, were aban- 
doned. We could not attempt to carry them 
off over the rough roads. Our prize consisted 
in all of twenty-three horses and seven prison- 
ers. We pressed on to Millwood and Front 
Royal that night, passing north under cover of 
the Massanutton Mountain. We reached New 
Market the following morning with our pris- 
oners and horses. 

A few days later Captain Blackford came 
into camp and handed me six hundred dollars 
in gold as my share of the proceeds of the sale 
of the horses. This was a privilege accorded 
to scouts and not to regular army officers and 
privates. Money of this kind I ahvays sent to 
my banker in Richmond, to be applied equally 
for credit of my brother and myself, the former 
being in the infantry. This gave us plenty of 
money for some months to come, and enabled 
us to keep up a respectable outfit. 

Shortly after this time, during the month of 
April, I was suddenly taken sick with a bilious 
attack, and could not go with my company on 
the West Virginia expedition to Greenland's 
Gap. 



86 



I Spent most of the time in bed at Mrs. 
Thomas Jordan's house, in Luray, Va., and 
she was very kind and good to me. I soon re- 
covered, however, and rejoined my company on 
■its return to the Valley, about the first of 
June, 1863. 

We were detached at this point from the 
Maryland Battalion, and ordered to report to 
General Ewell as his body-guard. The old 
brigade, under command of General Jones, had 
been ordered east of the Blue Ridge to join 
General Stuart's command in the vicinity of 
Culpeper C. H. 

Gen. Robert E. Lee was evidently concen- 
trating his whole army in this vicinity, some 
twenty miles south of Winchester, preparatory 
to another invasion of Maryland and Pennsyl- 
vania. 

Milroy was at Winchester and Berryville, 
and Ewell was moving on Winchester with his 
corps. It took position for battle on the morn- 
ing of June 14th, Early leading the attack. 
Johnson's Division had been moved north of 
Winchester that night to anticipate, if possible, 
any attempt of Milroy to escape towards Mar- 



87 

tinsburg, but Johnson could not reach his po- 
sition in time to intercept Milroy. He got 
away with a small body of troops on the road 
to Harper's Ferry. 

The next morning Winchester surrendered, 
leaving in our hands several thousand prison- 
ers, and a large quantity of stores, cannon, 
wagons and horses. It was a complete destruc- 
tion of Milroy's army. 

To be assigned to duty at the headquarters 
of a general commanding a corps was quite an 
elevation for us. We anticipated pleasant mili- 
tary experiences, which were more than real- 
ized before we got through the Gettysburg 
campaign. 

At Hagerstown, where a number of our men 
resided prior to the war, they met old friends 
and relatives, and were most royally treated. 
At Chambersburg and Carlisle, although in the 
enemy's country, we received many smiles from 
the girls peeping through the windows. No 
damage of any kind was done to property, and 
the citizens generally looked upon us as a rather 
civilized and well-behaved crowd. 



88 



Captain Bond was authorized by General 
Ewell to make occasional scouts in the vicinity, 
to replenish our larder or pick up something 
good for the boys. We invited ourselves one 
day to dine at a good-looking house, with big 
barns and well-stored granaries. We ventured 
to order a dinner for ten. At first the old lady 
was rather reluctant to obey our Captain's com- 
mand. She did not relish working for a lot of 
rebels, but seeing that we meant business and 
intended to have the dinner, she finally got to 
work and rccdly set up for us a most satisfying 
repast within a short time. 

We saw some very pretty girls in the kitchen, 
doubtless the daughters of the old lady, squint- 
ing at us from time to time, but whenever per- 
ceived that we could see them, they ''skedad- 
dled" out of sight. 

We all sat down to dinner, and expressed 
ourselves as greatly pleased with the hospital- 
ity of the landlady; we told her we should be 
very glad to see the young ladies, that we were 
not barbarians, and that they would be sur- 
prised to see how nicely we could act towards 
them, if they would come up and wait on us. 



The old lady opened the door and cried out, 
"Come up, girls; these rebel boys are not as 
bad as you think," and in a few minutes the 
girls were all up and having a jolly time with 
us. I think they forgot in a short time that we 
were enemies of their country and destroyers 
of their homes. Several flirtations occurred, 
nnd all sorts of promises to return after the war 
were made. These girls were really loath to 
bid us adieu, and waved their handkerchiefs 
at us as long as we were in sight, and they fre- 
quently said, 'TIow could you be so nice and be 
a rebel?" 

Two days later we were drawn up in line of 
battle in front of Gettysburg. This was the 
first day's fight. The battle broke over that 
beautiful valley about three o'clock in the aft- 
ernoon. Ewell had thrown his men against the 
Eleventh Army Corps, and by four o'clock the 
whole Confederate line was driving the enemy 
before it. General Reynolds was killed in this 
fight. Captain Bond, leading his company, was 
among the first to charge into Gettysburg. 

General Ewell the next morning appointed 
Captain Bond Provost Marshal of the town. 



90 



We all did active service throughout the entire 
three days' fight, and on the night of July 4th, 
the night of the withdrawal of Lee's army from 
Gettysburg, we were deployed in front of 
Ewell's line as pickets, to remain in our saddles 
until relieved. Those of us who were there 
will never forget that night. The dead had 
been exposed to the broiling sun for more than 
twenty-four hours, and had already turned 
black. 

To add to the horror of the scene and the 
cries and groans of dying men, in the midst of 
whom we stood, a terrible thunder and light- 
ning storm broke over the battle-field. The 
rain fell in torrents, and as each of us stood 
at his post, with pistol in hand, the lightning 
flashed in our faces casting shadows on the 
dead strewn around us. Here we remained 
until day dawned. Who can forget that night ! 
Our sergeant passed down the line, forming us 
into columns of fours, preparatory to marching 
off the battle-field. 

We continued as General Ewell's body-guard 
until we approached Hagerstown, where we re- 
joined our battalion. In the streets of Hagers- 



91 

town we encountered a Federal regiment of 
cavalry, and fought with them in hand-to-hand 
combat. I shall never forget the magnificent 
conduct of Sergeant Hammond Dorsey, of our 
company. With his strong arm he wielded his 
sabre like Hercules, cutting down many of the 
enemy from their horses. 

We drove them back on the road to Boones- 
boro', and in another encounter, later in the 
same evening, our gallant Captain was cut 
down from his horse with a serious wound in 
his left leg, compelling his absence from us for 
several months, while suffering severely from 
his wound. 

We were all *'bottled up" with General Lee's 
army for some days at Williamsport, owing to 
the high water of the Potomac. General Lee 
fortified his position, and would have given 
battle to General Meade if he had attempted to 
press us beyond this point. 

I have a very indistinct recollection of what 
occurred across the river ; in fact, there was no 
fighting of any consequence. General Lee 
gradually retired towards Winchester and then 
to Culpeper, our command extending as far as 
Fredericksburg on our extreme right. 



92 

I was called to Gen. Fitz Lee's headquarters 
as a courier in the fall of 1863. We were then 
stationed near Fredericksburg, Colonel Bradley 
T. Johnson in command of our battalion. 
I had always wished to serve under Lee, al- 
though at that time I knew him only by reputa- 
tion. The whole cavalry corps looked upon 
him as an eminently able young officer, and one 
who would rise rapidly in the estimation of the 
army. 

I felt that I might have a chance here. I 
certainly did my part, but promotion was slow 
to Marylanders without friends or influence. 

General Lee's headquarters at that time were 
about three miles distant from Fredericksburg, 
at Guest's house, on the old plank road. 

I suppose I was indebted for this slight eleva- 
tion to Capt. Henry Lee, brother of Gen. Fitz 
Lee, a classmate of mine at the University of 
Virginia prior to the war. From the begin- 
ning I formed a most agreeable association 
with Gen. Lee, his staff, couriers and mem- 
bers of the Signal Corps, which has lasted these 
many years, and it is a great pleasure to me, 
whenever the opportunity offers, of coming to- 



93 



gether with these old comrades. General Lee, 
recognizing my desire not only to serve my 
country, but to make for myself a place and po- 
sition at his headquarters, promoted me, after 
the Culpeper fight, to the rank of sergeant of 
the Signal Corps. I participated in all the im- 
portant engagements which took place during 
the autumn of 1863, and shortly after the fight 
at Mine Run, our division went into winter 
quarters at Charlottesville. 

I recall with much pride the magnificent con- 
duct of our cavalry division, under command 
of Gen. Fitz Lee, in the attack on Kilpatrick's 
Division at Culpeper and Brandy Station; and 
then again at Buckland, on the Warrenton 
Road. I could not resist the opportunity of 
going in with our men in a great charge, which 
took place in the railroad cut near Brandy Sta- 
tion, where we flanked the enemy. I brought 
out a Yankee sergeant, who turned over to me 
a very handsome Colt's revolver, which I pre- 
sented to General Lee. 



CHAPTER VIII 

Our command, after wintering at Charlottes- 
ville, where Gen. Fitz Lee devoted a great deal 
of time to the reorganization of the cavalry 
division, to make it more effective in the spring 
campaign of '64, moved to the vicinity of Fred- 
ericksburg. 

It was about this time that General Grant, 
who had assumed command of the Federal 
forces, and whose intention was to attack Gen- 
eral Lee, began his great move to the Wilder- 
ness, Chancellorsville and North Anna, culmi- 
nating in his overwhelming check at Cold Har- 
bor. 

The cavalry at this time was most actively 
engaged guarding both flanks of Lee's army. 
Our division was thrown in front at Spottsyl- 
vania Court House until Longstreet's Corps 
could come up. This was one of the severest 
fights in which we ever engaged. 



95 



We were driven back to the temporary barri- 
cade put up by our infantry. It was at this 
point that Colonel Collins, of the Fifteenth Vir- 
ginia Cavalry, was killed, and Major Mason 
and I were ordered by General Lee to bring out 
his body. There was great confusion at the 
moment, and we were being pressed to the rear 
by the advancing line of Federal infantry. I 
dismounted, and, with the assistance of Mason, 
tried to lift Collins to my saddle, but failed in 
doing so, and, under heavy fire, we were com- 
pelled to leave him between the battle-lines. 
After remounting, I had to jump a high barri- 
cade, and in the act my horse, a noted piebald 
stallion, was killed. 

General Lee was moving his army by the 
right flank, chastising Grant severely whenever 
he attempted to turn it. 

We were now constantly engaging the 
enemy, and were in the saddle day and night. 
In a little skirmish near Taylorsville, Hanover 
County, we encountered the Fifth United 
States Regulars, attacked and routed them. In 
this fight our handsome young courier, Tom 
Burke, was shot through the leg, a tender lad 



96 



of scarcely twenty years, as pretty as a pic- 
ture, with rosy cheeks. We heard the bullet 
strike him. It was no joke, but he bore it like 
a man and behaved like a veteran. 

The next day the memorable cavalry fight at 
Yellow Tavern took place. Sheridan came 
with overwhelming numbers. We lost the gal- 
lant Jeb Stuart, the commander-in-chief of our 
cavalry, but Sheridan was foiled in his attempt 
to capture Richmond. 

It was a desperate fight along the entire line. 
General Stuart was wounded and was brought 
off the field by some of the gallant members of 
Company K, First Virginia Cavalry. I am 
proud to say that this company was com- 
manded by Capt. Gus Dorsey, of Howard 
County, Maryland, and was composed princi- 
pally of Marylanders. 

Major Ferguson, our chief of staff, had his 
horse shot under him in the fight, and in the 
confusion the members of our headquarters 
staff were widely scattered. 

I was standing on the Richmond road, our 
cavalry having just been driven back to the 
right, when Stuart was wounded. That night 



97 



I saw him placed in an ambulance. He insisted 
upon being taken to his wife. I have always 
felt that Stuart might have lived if he had been 
kept quiet that night. In a few days the re- 
port came of his death. This was a great loss 
to the country, an irreparable loss to the cav- 
alry. Jackson had died just a year before. 
Thus two of our greatest commanders had 
''passed over the river" in so short a time. 

On May 23d we were at Atlee's Station. In 
the afternoon we moved to Kenyon's farm, on 
the Lower James, opposite Brandon, for the 
purpose of breaking up an encampment of 
negro troops, who had fortified quite exten- 
sively at a point known as Harrison's Landing. 
We reached the place about one o'clock. I had 
command of headquarter couriers in driving in 
the pickets and led the charge. 

There were about ten of us against a com- 
pany of negroes on picket. Willie McFarland, 
of Richmond, Va., a very warm, personal 
friend of mine, and a member of my signal 
corps, killed a negro in this charge. The rest 
surrendered without further resistance. 



98 



I carried a message from General Lee, under 
flag of truce, to the commander of the fort, to 
surrender. This was refused by Brigadier- 
General Wild, in command, and I was told to 
say to General Lee, "Take the fort if you can." 
This garrison consisted of three regiments of 
colored troops, and a number of transports and 
gunboats were in the river in reserve. 

On my return I was asked if the fort could 
be taken, and I replied that it could not. I had 
been so close to it, surrounded as it was by a 
moat, that my mind was quickly made up that 
any attempt, even to attack, would prove disas- 
trous. However, the order was given to dis- 
mount, and two lines formed. As we ap- 
proached the fort the negroes, with uncovered 
heads, rose above the intrenchments and leveled 
their guns upon us. I could see the glint of the 
sun reflected on their teeth and their polished 
rifle-barrels. Then came a cloud of smoke, bul- 
lets whizzed through our ranks, and the men in 
our lines tumbled over each other, some for- 
ward, some backward. Our fire was ineffec- 
tive, and they poured volley after volley into 
our waning ranks. Finally our lines broke and 



99 

retreated, and we left many dead and wounded 
on the field. In addition to the effective firing 
from the fort, several gunboats opened on us, 
and stampeded our horses. We encamped that 
night on the Charles City road, near White's 
Tavern, where we received rations and corn 
from Richmond. 

On May 28th we had a severe fight at 
Hawes' Shop, where we encountered the enemy 
in force, and engaged them sharply. We found 
Yankee cavalry, supported by Yankee infantry, 
in our front. 

The Charleston Dragoons, a splendid body 
of young men, fresh from their homes, well 
mounted, became engaged with the enemy. We 
soon discovered that they were confronted by a 
line of solid infantry. General Lee sent me to 
withdraw them. Several of the staff said 
"Good-bye," as, in obedience to orders, I rode 
at full speed to the rescue. 

Bullets were flying thick and fast, and were 
thinning out the ranks of this battalion; yet 
they continued fighting desperately against 
great odds. 



lOO 



I had not time to address the Colonel. I 
gave the order, as I broke into their ranks, 
*'Right about face, double quick, march," and 
succeeded in extricating them from a very dan- 
gerous position. General Lee complimented 
me for the prompt manner in which I had act- 
ed, and I was also congratulated on all sides on 
having come out myself unscathed. I think 
Colonel Rutledge or Colonel Donovan com- 
manded this battalion. 

There was no fighting the following day, the 
division remaining several days in the vicinity 
of Atlee's Station. During all this time Gen. 
Robert E. Lee was stubbornly and successfully 
resisting the efforts of Grant to turn his right 
flank. 

On June first the cavalry moved across the 
Chickahominy towards Seven Pines, in the 
vicinity of Bottom's Bridge. That afternoon 
both infantry and cavalry became engaged. 
General Ewell attacking and driving the enemy 
from his front. 

Breckenridge's Division came up and we 
were relieved. On June 3d there was heavy 
fighting along the entire line. Grant was hand- 



lOI 



somely repulsed, and many prisoners were 
taken. At this time the cavalry had most im- 
portant service to render, to keep General Lee 
advised as to whether or not Grant intended 
crossing the James River, and if so, at what 
point. 

The movement of the cavalry was so rapid in 
those days that it was a rare thing to find divi- 
sion headquarters wagons up at night. We gen- 
erally made headquarters at some farmer's 
house, and these people, although greatly im- 
poverished by the war, always gave us the best 
they had. 

The following day the division was ordered 
to Ashland, within sixteen miles of Richmond, 
and here we were joined by Butler's Brigade. 
We learned that a large force of cavalry, under 
Sheridan, had encamped the night before at 
Atlett's, in Caroline County. 

The scouts reported that Sheridan's column 
was marching to join Hunter in the Valley. 
We left Ashland on the afternoon of the 9th, 
and encamped that night near Trinity Church, 
made an early start the next morning for Fred- 
erickshall, halted there three hours, resumed 



I02 



the march, and encamped at night near Louisa 
C. H. Sheridan's cavalry encamped within 
three miles of us. 

June nth we were in the saddle at 3 A. M., 
encountered the enemy before daylight, and 
fighting continued throughout the day. I was 
in the charge that broke Custer's line and cap- 
tured his headquarters wagons and Colonel 
Pennington's Horse Artillery. 

A few years ago, while visiting Fortress 
Monroe, I had the pleasure of meeting Gen- 
eral Pennington, and of informing him that on 
that occasion my trophy in the battle was a 
handsome buffalo robe. I had taken this robe 
from Pennington's wagon, and I laughingly re- 
marked that, if he still wanted it, there was a 
lady in Richmond by the name of Miss Mason 
who would doubtless return it to him. 

I also had the pleasure of talking to Captain 
Green, Custer's adjutant-general, who was cap- 
tured in this fight, and to whom I extended 
some slight service on the battle-field. 

Some years afterwards I had the pleasure of 
meeting him in Baltimore. He recalled my 
kindness to him, remembered my name, and 



I03 

came into my office to meet and thank me 
again. 

Trevilians was a desperate encounter, with 
varying success to both sides, but finally termi- 
nated in Sheridan's retreat. 

Hampton followed him in hot pursuit. Our 
division, however, moved into Trevilians Sta- 
tion the next morning to find a large number of 
prisoners and wounded men left on the field. 
Orders were given to establish a hospital and 
to see that the men received proper attention. 
Their friends had left them to our care. 

That night, after a march of nearly twenty 
miles, we encamped again in the vicinity of 
Frederickshall. In speaking of the battle of 
Trevilians, I am reminded of many sad mem- 
ories. Up to this time in almost every engage- 
ment in which we fought, we had been success- 
ful. We had whipped and routed the enemy 
upon many a field. Now the tide was turning. 
No longer had we the men, horses or provender 
with which to make this branch of the service 
effective. The history of the cavalry of the 
Army of Northern Virginia, under Stuart, 
Hampton and Lee, will, however, stand forever 
distinguished for its many achievements. 



I04 

General Sheridan, with inexhaustible re- 
sources, was daily adding to his magnificently 
equipped corps. From this time on we had no 
means of maintaining our former efficiency. 
Sheridan was indefatigable, never idle. Within 
two days we learned he was again on the 
move. It was almost impossible to keep up 
with him, and we were on the lookout day and 
night. The whole line of march was perfumed 
with dead horses. 

It was just at this time that we were expe- 
riencing the most trying conditions of the war. 
On June 23d we were ordered into saddle at 
I A. M. We moved out across White Oak 
Swamp, and from thence to Charles City C. H. 

A portion of our division that afternoon en- 
gaged Gregg's Division. Notwithstanding the 
excessive fatigue of the men, Gregg was driven 
back in confusion and pursued for five miles 
until dark. 

Major Breathed, a distinguished Maryland- 
er, of whom I shall have more to say later on, 
killed Colonel Covode, of the Fourth Pennsyl- 
vania Cavalry. 



I05 

In the vicinity of the James River, a mala- 
rial country, we suffered from intensely hot 
weather, and for the want of food and rest, 
watching Grant's movements, to ascertain at 
what point he would cross the river or whether 
he would retreat to Yorktown. 

I cannot recall what occurred daily during 
this hot weather, but we were constantly on the 
march. About July ist we crossed the James 
River, and marched to Petersburg, and from 
there to Reams' Station, on the Weldon Rail- 
road. 

I now reach a very important cavalry fight. 
General Wilson, commanding a division of 
Federal cavalry, was raiding in our rear. We 
were ordered in pursuit, and were soon in close 
touch with him. We were brought into action 
early in the morning, just after Mahone had 
captured most of his artillery. 

We became hotly engaged, forcing the enemy 
before us, and destroyed most of his wagons, 
caissons and ammunition. We soon discovered 
that it was a raid of depredation and cruelty. 
No respect was paid to private property or to 
the homes of the defenceless. It developed that 



io6 



more than three thousand negroes were follow- 
ing in the wake of the cavalry and that the ma- 
jority of the soldiers were loaded with stolen 
household articles of some kind or other, par- 
ticularly bed-clothing and wearing apparel. 
Negro women v/ere seen throwing their little 
babies ruthlessly aside. Our men became 
greatly enraged, and it was difficult to restrain 
them. It w^as a question of quarter or no quar- 
ter, and it was mostly no quarter. I had just 
returned from the right of our line, where I 
had witnessed dozens of Yankees shot down in 
the act of plundering private houses and insult- 
ing helpless women, when I hastened to the 
front with orders from General Lee to keep 
him advised of what was going on. 

I was with Major Breathed at the head of 
the charging column when he fell wounded. 
General Lee and Major Ferguson rode up, and 
everything was done for Breathed that could 
be done. Fortunately he was not dangerously 
wounded, although at the time the wound was 
supposed to be fatal.. He rejoined his com- 
mand within a few weeks. We continued in 
pursuit of the enemy all day until late at night, 



I07 



camping in the vicinity of Jarratt's Landing. 
It was a day of horrors. We witnessed the 
cruelty of warfare in almost every phase. The 
poor negro women who had left their homes in 
the hope of obtaining their freedom remained 
screaming along the roads and in the forests 
through the night. 

As we pressed the enemy, we found the roads 
strewn with every description of cavalry equip- 
ment, wearing apparel, dead men and dead 
horses, and every variety of stolen property 
from a negro down to a brooch. 

That night, when I was about ready to rest 
my tired head, Gen. Fitz Lee said: "Gill, I 
want you to take despatches to Gen. Robert 
E. Lee, headquarters Appomattox, opposite 
Petersburg." 

I can never forget that night. The stars 
were shining brightly, but I was in a strange 
land, and I might say far from home, fully 
twenty-five to thirty miles from General Lee's 
headquarters. I told General Lee that it was 
almost impossible for me to find my way to 
Petersburg. General Lee said : ''You have the 
best bump of locality of anyone at headquar- 



io8 



ters. There is the North star ; follow it until 
you reach the Dinwiddie C. H. plank road. 
Turn sharp to the right, and you will be on the 
road to Petersburg." 

Little did I think what I would have to en- 
dure that night. After a ride of a few miles 
from camp I found the road and the woods re- 
sounding with the screams of negro women and 
the groans of dying men. This made night 
hideous. I pressed on, however, with my re- 
volver cocked, not knowing at what moment I 
should be shot down. All kinds of appeals 
were made to me, but I never stopped. About 
two o'clock in the morning I crossed the Din- 
widdie plank road. 

If anything, that night was more trying than 
the night we stood picket in front of Gettys- 
burg. 

I reached General Lee's headquarters about 
6:30 in the morning, and delivered my des- 
patches. No one asked me to breakfast. I re- 
turned to Reams' Station, about twelve miles 
away, hungry, tired, and with nothing to eat, 
reaching camp about noon. Gen. Fitz Lee and 
his division came up the following day. 



I09 

A few days later I met Stringfellow, General 
Lee's popular scout, and in response to an invi- 
tation from him, with six or seven other men, I 
accompanied him on one of his expeditions 
within the enemy's lines. The first night was 
spent in the dismal swamp near City Point. We 
were almost devoured by mosquitoes. Our 
faces the next morning were badly disfigured. 
I have always been under the impression that 
we were lost that night. It was cloudy, and we 
could not take our bearings, and I think that 
we sought the swamp for safety. We started 
early the next morning, and just as we struck 
the road leading to City Point, we came face 
to face with a squad of eight or nine Yankee 
cavalrymen. We charged them at once and 
routed them, capturing three prisoners. My 
horse was shot through the neck in the melee 
but I managed to get back to camp with him. 
Thus ended this little exploit. 



CHAPTER IX 

On July 29th we broke camp and marched 
towards Richmond. The next morning we 
were ordered back, owing doubtless to the ex- 
plosion of the crater on our lines. We return- 
ed to our old encampment near Reams' Station. 
Here we learned that Hampton was fighting 
south of us on our right. 

Again, on August 5th, we were ordered to 
Richmond, and continued the march to Ash- 
land. From Ashland we marched across the 
South Anna River, and encamped late that 
evening. Here we found recent newspapers 
from the North, acknowledging the failure of 
Grant's campaign against Richmond and 
Petersburg. 

The head of our column was turned towards 
Culpeper; evidently we were again on the 
march to the Valley. From Culpeper we march- 



Ill 



ed to Flint Hill and across the Blue Ridge at 
Chester Gap, hahing at Front Royal. 

Our division met the enemy in the vicinity of 
Front Royal, but being at headquarters, I did 
not participate in any fighting. 

News came to us on the 20th of August of 
the death of General Chambliss, who had fallen 
near Richmond. He was a popular officer, and 
dearly beloved by everyone. 

In the Valley General Early was in command 
of the army, and we remained inactive almost 
up to the date of the battle of Winchester. We 
knew that Sheridan was preparing to move on 
Winchester. That memorable battle took place 
on the 19th of September, in which we were 
badly whipped. 

Some one erred in this fight. It seem ridicu- 
lous to engage Sheridan with an army of 
39,000 opposed to our 12,000 men. Perhaps 
if Early had kept his three divisions in close 
touch the result might have been different. I 
witnessed the entire Confederate line give way. 
I had been sent to Stevenson's Depot to with- 
draw Lomax, and we all came back at a gallop 
with the Yankee cavalry close on our heels. 



112 



General Fitz Lee displayed conspicuous gal- 
lantry in his efforts to rally the cavalry, and 
was shot, himself, after having two horses go 
down under him in quick succession. He was 
badly wounded. It was almost a miracle that 
he escaped capture. Had it not been for several 
members of his staff, who stood by him and got 
him off the field, he would have been in the 
hands of the enemy. 

Captain Cavendish and I, together with a 
number of headquarters men, charged at the 
head of the 6th Virginia Regiment, hoping to 
check the enemy for the moment to enable the 
infantry to reform its lines under the gallant 
Gordon of Georgia. 

Sheridan virtually drove us through Win- 
chester, and it would be very difficult for many 
of us to recall where we slept that night, but we 
managed to get together the next morning, 
when, under orders from Major J. D. Fergu- 
son, Chief of our staff, we reported to General 
Wickham, then temporarily assigned to the 
command of our division. 

We never witnessed a worse condition of 
affairs or worse demoralization among our 



"3 

troops, resulting from the defeat at Winchester, 
as well as the defeat which followed two days 
later at Fisher's Hill. Here was a strong posi- 
tion and should have been held, but for some 
lack of generalship, or for some other reason, 
Sheridan broke in on our left, precipitating 
another disastrous rout. 

After this experience I always felt like giv- 
ing a groan when I had to fight under Early. If 
Gordon had commanded the army, with Fitz 
Lee commanding the cavalry, the result might 
have been very different. 

The retreat continued up the Valley in the 
direction of Staunton. We were skirmishing 
daily. Although only a sergeant in charge of 
the Signal Corps and our couriers, I managed 
to make a good impression on General Wick- 
ham. 

On the morning of the 27th or 28th of Sep- 
tember, we were sharply engaged with the 
enemy near a little town by the name of Vienna, 
not far from Port Republic. We had just 
come out of the Luray Valley. The officer com- 
manding the skirmishers was shot down. Gen- 
eral Wickham turned quickly to me, and said : 



114 

"Go, and take command of that line." This was 
a recognition which I had long sought. In a 
jiffy I was at my post. 

With the exception of myself, the cavalry- 
men were dismounted. We held the enemy in 
check, although greatly outnumbered. I had 
only been there a few minutes when I heard a 
bullet strike my favorite horse, Red Eye. I 
scanned his right side, but could not see where 
the bullet had penetrated. It was all over, how- 
ever, in a few minutes, when the gallant charger 
fell to his knees and rolled over on his left side, 
and I stepped to the ground. 

I remained in command until the afternoon. 
The infantry retired towards Brown's Gap, 
while the cavalry moved towards Waynesboro ' 
I was fortunate enough, although under fire, 
to remove my saddle and bridle and get them 
to the rear. It was the same old saddle captur- 
ed in the cavalry charge at Second Bull Run, 
which I valued very highly. 

I got back to headquarters late that night. 
We encamped near Waynesboro'. Next morn- 
ing I asked General Wickham for three days' 
leave of absence to go to Richmond, to get suffi- 



115 



cient money to remount myself, which leave 
was granted. 

I arrived in Richmond October ist, 1864. At 
that time Confederate money was almost value- 
less. I succeeded, however, in negotiating a 
draft for one hundred dollars in greenbacks, 
payable in Baltimore, for which I received thir- 
ty-five hundred dollars in Confederate cur- 
rency. 

I should mention that I had drawn this draft 
on my mother, who rebuked me in several of 
her recent ''underground" letters for not draw- 
ing more frequently. It was my rule, however, 
never to ask for money from my dear mother 
unless I was sick, or for some such purpose as 
just stated. 

I had seen the abuse of this privilege early 
in the war on the part of many gallant Mary- 
landers, who had come South with the best in- 
tentions, but who were ruined by dissipation 
and riotous living at the Confederate capital. 

My finances being satisfactorily arranged, I 
strolled up the main street in Richmond to the 
Spottswood Hotel. Here I met some old com- 
rades, among whom was George Lemmon. I 



ii6 



greeted him most cordially, but was shocked to 
note the expression of his face. Something 
surely had happened. Lemmon told me of my 
brother's death. He had fallen the day before 
in a desperate encounter with the enemy in 
front of Reams' Station. 

That gallant and heroic band of young 
Marylanders for the second time, as at Gulp's 
Hill, had been slaughtered by the enemy. How 
terrible the blow to me! The dear boy, two 
years my junior, a lad not yet 20 years of age, 
the idol of his family, beloved by his comrades 
and friends, as brave a soldier as ever crossed 
the Potomac, to die in this way. His body was 
never recovered. I secured a flag of truce from 
the Secretary of War, but like all brave soldiers 
who die on the ramparts of the enemy's works, 
he is buried in common with the brave who fell 
on both sides. 

Read what a comrade writes about him : 

''One of the gallant dead. 
Killed in battle by a bullet shot from the 
hand of the enemy, before Petersburg, Va., 
September 30th, 1864. 

Somerville Pinkney Gill. 



117 



''He was one of the best soldiers of the Army 
of Northern Virginia and that ever crossed the 
Potomac in defence of his oppressed State as 
well as the noble Confederacy. 

"He died bravely, he was wounded slightly 
in the shoulder, and was told by his Lieutenant 
to leave the field. He replied, 'I am only 
slightly wounded,' and shortly after a bullet 
pierced his noble forehead and he fell dead. 

"He would have been taken off by us, but 
there were so many wounded to look after that 
we had to leave him in the hands of the enemy. 
Such is war, and the good and brave boy has 
gone from us forever." 

"No name, no record! Ask the world, 

The world has read his story. 
If all his annals can unfold 

A prouder tale of glory. 
If ever merely human life 

Hath taught diviner moral, 
If ever round a worthier brow 

Was twined a purer laurel." 

Being unsuccessful in my effort to recover 
my brother's body, I returned to our lines to 
visit the remaining members of his old com- 
pany. How few of that gallant band were left ! 



i8 



We stood and wept upon each other's shoul- 
ders before a word was spoken. 

I got back to Richmond the same night. I 
sought no one. In my room at the Spottswood, 
buried in inconsolable grief, I sat down to break 
the news to my dear mother. I struggled for 
hours over my letter, that I might break the 
news as gently as possible. 

I wished I could say, but I could not say, 
what some have said : "Happily, however, all 
this is passed, to be seen no more. The fires in 
that chasm were quenched in Brother's blood." 

I arrived in Charlottesville on the morning 
of October 3d. Here I secured a remount at 
the cost of $3,000, but he was not equal to old 
Red Eye or my piebald stallion, shot under me 
in the battle of Spottsylvania. 

Leaving Charlottesville immediately, I press- 
ed on to Harrisonburg to rejoin the cavalry. I 
caught up with them on the 4th, in the neigh- 
borhood of Furrow's Furnace, west of Harri- 
sonburg, and on the road to Warm Springs. 
Here I found headquarters affairs greatly 
mixed. 



119 

General Wickham had asked for and had 
been granted a 30 days' leave of absence, and 
we were ordered to report to General Rosser, 
now in command of the Division. Rosser 
learning that the Yankee cavalry was retiring 
from Harrisonburg, concentrated all his forces 
and started in pursuit. Rosser made it lively 
for the cavalry. We had daily encounters with 
the enemy. 

Major Breathed, of the artillery, led in sev- 
eral charges, and returned with his sword red 
with blood to its hilt. We pressed the enemy 
down the Valley as far as Fisher's Hill, when 
the Yankees the following day turned tables on 
us, driving us pell mell to the rear, flanking us 
right and left. 

Captain Walke, Ordinance Officer of Gen- 
eral Lee's staff, was killed in a gallant attempt 
to rally the men. 



CHAPTER X 

It was about this time, during the month of 
October, 1864, that I was taken sick with my 
third attack of fever, and ordered to the hospi- 
tal in Richmond. On the train I met the two 
Misses Thompson of Staunton, Va., Miss Car- 
ter, afterwards Mrs. John Lee Carroll, of 
Maryland, and her sister, who were exceedingly 
kind to me, and suggested that instead of going 
to the hospital, I should try to secure a room at 
the Arlington Hotel. 

This was a valuable suggestion, for here I 
found my old friend, Mrs. Robert Hough, of 
Baltimore, Mrs. Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, and 
several other ladies, who cared for me most ten- 
derly during two weeks of catarrhal fever. 

When I got out again I remember a charm- 
ing visit to Petersburg, visiting Col. George 
Boiling's family during my convalescence. I 



121 



felt sufficiently restored in health to rejoin the 
command, which had gone into winter quarters 
at Waynesboro'. 

In many respects it was an extremely sad and 
gloomy winter, because the inevitable was upon 
us. We knew that the spring campaign would 
end the war with the downfall of the Confed- 
eracy. 

In the winter of 1864-65 Gen. Fitz Lee in- 
trusted me with the command of a scouting 
party with orders to reconnoitre the Valley 
of Virginia, then partly in the hands of the 
Federal forces under Sheridan. 

Sheridan and his army had their winter 
quarters near Winchester, and it behooved us to 
exercise the greatest vigilance to escape capture. 

I recall spending a night some time in 
March at Major Taylor's plantation on the 
Shenandoah, where we sought refuge owing to 
a heavy blizzard or snowstorm. During the 
night the house was surrounded by Yankees, 
and if it had not been for a faithful negro man, 
who assured them that no rebels were there, we 
should in all probability have been captured. 



122 



The old darkey came up into our room, and 
said the house had been surrounded by Yankees 
and that we had better get away as soon as we 
could. One can fancy we were not long in 
obeying the orders of the old darkey. When 
we left the house and got into the river road, 
we heard the clatter of a large cavalry force 
coming down the road. They evidently knew 
that we were in the neighborhood and were not 
satisfied with their previous investigation. Of 
course, it was not for us to give them fight but 
to escape as rapidly as possible, and we dashed 
off for the nearest ford in the river, to cross 
over to the mountain side. 

We were hotly pursued across the river. 
Pistol shot after pistol shot was fired at us. 
Fortunately, however, no one was hurt. It was 
a bitter cold morning, and the dash through the 
river wet us to the skin. We galloped a mile 
or more before reaching a habitation of any 
kind. Here we stopped to dry our clothes, and 
to get something to eat and a little apple-jack to 
drive the frost out of our bones. 

An old farmer and his wife were the only 
occupants of the house, and they did every- 



123 

thing for our comfort. We were given a large 
room with a big hickory fire, and in this way 
dried our clothes. In a few hours we were in 
condition to continue the march. 

We concluded not to risk another trip into 
the Valley, which was swarming with patroling 
parties of the enemy. There was nothing left 
for us to do but to go to Upperville, Fauquier 
County, and to remain there for a few days be- 
fore deciding on our future course. 

I had now only four men with me. Two of the 
original party had been sent back with des- 
patches to Gen. Fitzhugh Lee. We were most 
hospitably received at Upperville by the good 
people of that little village. We made the ac- 
quaintance of a charming family by the name of 
Stephenson. All the old soldiers who had an 
eye for a pretty girl will doubtless remember 
Miss Josephine Stephenson. Then the Harri- 
sons and Boilings were near by, and the Dula- 
nys, on the road to Middleburg, all charming 
people. 

I had the pleasure of being introduced to 
Captain Glasscock, a captain of Mosby's battal- 
ion. I was constantly meeting men of Mosby's 



124 



command, all splendid fellows, fine horsemen 
and gallant soldiers. I was very much pleased 
with the reception I received from everybody. 
Captain Glasscock invited McFarland and me 
to his house. The Captain had inherited a fine 
estate from his father a few miles from Upper- 
ville, and, to add greatly to the agreeable com- 
panionship, we met there the Captain who had 
recently taken to himself a Virginia bride, and 
we felt that no one could be more fortunate 
than we were in this opportunity. 

Mosby's men were always on the alert, and 
scarcely a day passed without encountering the 
enemy at some point. This was only a few 
weeks before the final surrender at Appomat- 
tox. 

Glasscock explained to me one morning a lit- 
tle expedition he was getting up to capture a 
patrol of 22 Yankees, reported as making daily 
scouts from Georgetown on the road to Vienna 
in Loudoun County. I gladly availed myself of 
the opportunity to be with him on this occa- 
sion. He took with him about 25 men. Bush 
Underwood, one of his most trusted lieutenants, 
was placed in command of the squad which I 



125 



remained with, while Glasscock, with the rest 
of the men, took up a position directly on the 
road about a half-mile beyond where we were 
hid in the bushes. He would charge them in 
front, while Underwood would close in rear of 
the party after they passed the point where we 
were stationed. It was about midday when 
the patrol passed up the road. Though they 
were in full sight of us, we were concealed from 
them. We waited for the signal from Glass- 
cock to attack, which was one shot from his pis- 
tol. The road was enclosed on both sides by a 
high fence. The minute the signal was given 
we dashed into the road, and in a few moments 
found ourselves face to face with the Yankees 
in full retreat under fire from Glasscock's 
pistols. In a moment we were locked together. 
The entire party was killed or captured with 
the exception of one officer and two men, who 
only escaped with fine horses by jumping the 
fence. In this melee I unhorsed a Yankee ser- 
geant, and shot him through the right shoulder 
just as he grappled my horse's reins and leveled 
his pistol in my face. I had the satisfaction to 
see him roll in the fence corner, but I held cap- 



126 



tive his horse, a fine sorrel mare, branded U. 
S., and it was upon this animal I surrendered 
a few weeks later. 

John Hipkins, of Norfolk, Virginia, rode 
side by side with me, and when we came back 
up the road, he claimed that he had shot the 
man. I put the question to the wounded ser- 
geant, who at once pointed to me as the guilty 
party. 

After this little engagement and my partici- 
pation in the Harmony fight, which took place 
a few days later, Captain Glasscock suggested 
that I be made a lieutenant in Baylor's com- 
pany, then organizing, if I would remain with 
Mosby's command. It was quite flattering to 
me to be offered this position, and I should have 
been only too well pleased to accept it and serve 
under so gallant a soldier as Baylor, but I was 
still under orders from Gen. Fitz Lee, and it 
was my duty to return to that command at the 
earliest possible moment. I was particularly 
desirous to be back with my old cavalry chief, 
and, if surrender had come, to surrender with 
those with whom I had been associated for sev- 
eral years. 



127 



It was just about this time that my cousin, 
George M. Gill, who had only a few months 
before joined Mosby's command, went with 
Lieut. Wiltshire, and several other young men, 
to make a scout to Stevenson's Depot. 

They were approaching the residence of Col. 
Daniel Bonham, as a Federal officer, who 
proved to be Lieutenant Eugene Ferris, of the 
30th Mass. Infantry, was seen to pass rapidly 
from the house to the stable, which was situa- 
ted in the corner of the yard. 

Lieut. Wiltshire and my cousin, who were 
riding fifty yards in advance of their comrades, 
passing through the gate which admitted them 
to the yard, dashed up to the stable door in 
which Ferris was standing. Without drawing 
his pistol from the holster, Wiltshire demanded 
a surrender. "Never with life," replied Ferris, 
and as Wiltshire was in the act of disengaging 
his pistol, Ferris inflicted a mortal wound in his 
neck. 

Gill immediately fired, but Ferris standing 
behind the door post was not struck and at once 
fired on Gill and inflicted on him a disabling 
wound. By this time the rest of the party had 
arrived on the scene of combat. 



128 



Ferris received a slight wound and was cap- 
tured. After the encounter was over, my 
cousin attempted, notwithstanding his wound, 
to return to his friends at Upperville, but from 
the loss of blood was compelled to stop at the 
house of a citizen in the Blue Ridge. I was in- 
formed of his whereabouts and went immedi- 
ately to him. I found him with a serious 
wound on the left side of his neck, in close 
proximity to the jugular vein. Although he 
was brave and cheerful, I realized the danger at 
once. I told him that I must be off immedi- 
ately for a doctor, and bring him some clean 
clothes. I recall very distinctly that it was a 
Thursday evening. I promised to be back the 
following evening. I rode all night and on my 
return Friday night I found my dear cousin a 
corpse. Oh, the horrors of war! Just as I 
feared, the wound began to slough. The artery 
gave way and death followed almost immedi- 
ately. The last word he uttered, as the old 
mountaineer stood beside him, who had so care- 
fully cared for him was, "I die at least in a 
good cause." 



129 



We buried him Sunday morning in a little 
grave-yard on the mountain side. We dug his 
grave, and I read a portion of the Episcopal 
burial service as we put him away. His father 
came after the war and removed his remains to 
Baltimore, where they now rest at Greenmount. 
George Gill was an exceptionally fine character. 
At college he exhibited unusually fine talent for 
public speaking, a fine omen of success in the 
practice of law, which would have been his 
profession had he lived. 

He participated in many of the great battles 
and was everywhere conspicuous for the high- 
est qualities of a soldier. The day after the sec- 
ond battle of Manassas he received a severe 
wound in a skirmish on the Little River turn- 
pike. This compelled him to absent himself 
from the army until the middle of November. 

From that time until after the disaster at 
Gettysburg he was constantly with Stuart's 
cavalry, but was taken prisoner at Hagerstown 
on the retreat of Lee's army. He spent five 
dreary months in prison, first at Fort Delaware, 
then at Point Lookout. At the end of this time 
he was sent to Richmond, and soon after re- 



I30 

joined his regiment, from which he was trans- 
ferred to Mosby's Partisan Rangers. 

The elements in him were finely blended, for 
manly courage was united with intelligence, a 
high morality and great gentleness of dispo- 
sition. 



"On Fame's eternal camping ground 
Their silent tents are spread, 

And memory guards with solemn round 
The bivouac of the dead." 



CHAPTER XI 

McFarland and T left Mosby's command 
sometime about the 8th of April, stopping over 
a few days at Warrenton. Here we learned for 
the first time of General Lee's surrender to 
Grant at Appomattox. 

The Richmond papers contained his farewell 
address to his soldiers of that great Army of 
Northern Virginia, with whom I had marched 
and fought for more than four years. I am 
proud of the privilege of having had my name 
recorded upon such a muster-roll. 

General Lee's last words to his soldiers were 
to cease fighting, return to their homes and 
strictly observe their parole until exchanged. 
Here McFarland and I were at Warrenton. 
greatly perplexed how to decide the next step to 
be taken. We finally parted at this point. He 
went to Richmond, where his family resided. I 



132 



returned to Captain Glasscock's house in Fau- 
quier County. They all welcomed me back, but 
I brought the sad inevitable news to them, the 
downfall of the Confederacy. 

The next day being- Sunday, we all went to 
church in Upperville, and just as the service 
was over, some one rode in with a late edition 
of the Baltimore American, giving full partic- 
ulars of Lee's surrender and the assassination 
of President Lincoln. 

I think this was about the i6th of April, and 
the following day copies of General Hancock's 
proclamation, — who was in command of the 
Department of the Valley, announcing the sur- 
render of Lee's army and granting to all Con- 
federate soldiers in that locality the same condi- 
tions of surrender as had been accorded to Gen. 
Lee's army, excepting Colonel Mosby, whom 
they had outlawed, were disseminated through 
the country. 

There was no fighting after this date. Every- 
body was asking one another what he should 
do. In discussing the matter with a number 
of my Maryland comrades I was asked if I in- 
tended to accept the terms of surrender and re- 



133 



turn home. I answered in the affirmative. Ev- 
erybody was of this opinion, fully realizing that 
the war was at an end. 

It was Sunday, the 23d of April, just after 
we had finished dinner at Captain Glasscock's 
house, where it was our custom to lounge on 
the grass or sit on the fence smoking our pipes, 
that our attention was called to several horse- 
men seen in the distance, crossing the fields in 
our direction. We soon recognized Col. Mosby 
and several of his men who were with him. 

As Col. Mosby rode up, the conversation 
turned almost immediately to Gen. Hancock's 
proclamation. He expressed surprise that any- 
one should accept such terms. He seemed 
chagrined that I had already advised some of 
my friends to do so. I soon found that Capt. 
Glasscock was thoroughly in accord with the 
views which I had expressed. Mosby protested 
against any one leaving his territory at that 
time. Then it was that I told him I had decided 
to leave Upperville the following morning and 
proceed with any of my old comrades who 
would join me to Gen. Hancock's headquarters, 
to accept the terms of surrender. I was sur- 



134 

prised to find about 20 of Mosby's men in the 
village, all of whom went with me and were 
duly paroled. The following- day Major Rich- 
ards, with about 300 of Mosby's men rode into 
Berryville and accepted the same terms. 

Those of us who were Marylanders were 
permitted by Gen. Hancock to go to Harper's 
Ferry, and from thence proceed by rail to Bal- 
timore over the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. 

When the train arrived at the Relay House 
late that evening, within 10 miles of Baltimore, 
and all were feeling exultant over the prospect 
of getting home that night, we had our feelings 
very much disturbed by the entrance into the 
car of a Federal officer demanding the surren- 
der of our paroles. We declined to give them 
up. He left the car but soon returned with a 
squad of soldiers, and ordered us out with 
fixed bayonets. Of course, we obeyed. 

We were imprisoned at the Relay House for 
more than 10 days. As we had been arrested and 
held as prisoners without explanation, in vio- 
lation of the sacred pledge of the Government, 
we felt very much incensed. I finally wrote a 
letter to General Tyler, then in command at that 



135 



point, and demanded my release, stating that he 
had no right to hold me a prisoner, that I had 
not violated my parole in any way, and that, if 
I was not to be released, I desired to commu- 
nicate with my old friend, Mr. Thomas Don- 
aldson, who lived on Lawyer's Hill, and, al- 
though a Unionist throughout the war, would 
see that the wrong was righted and my release 
secured. 

The following morning Gen. Tyler ordered 
me down under guard to his headquarters. I 
was told that if I could secure a suit of citi- 
zen's clothes from Baltimore, I would be al- 
lowed to go into the city. 

I asked permission to telegraph to Baltimore, 
which resulted in getting from Noah Walker & 
Co., a ready-made suit of clothing, which was 
sent out to me that afternoon in time for me to 
return to my family that evening. 

Thus ended my four years' experience as a 
Confederate soldier. 



136 



The record of the engagements in which I 
participated embrace the following historic 



names : 



First Manassas, 
Front Royal, 
Winchester, 
Bolivar Heights, 
Harrisonburg, 
Cross Keys, 
Seven Days' Battles 
Around Richmond, 
Cedar Mountain, 
Catletts Station, 
Second Manassas, 
Spottsylvania Court House. 

and many other cavalry 



Wilderness, 
Sharpsburg, 
Gettysburg, 
Strasburg, 
Woodstock, 
Reams's Station, 
Harrison Landing, 
Hawes Shop, 
Trevilians Station, 
Yellow Tavern, 
Brandy Station 
and Culpeper, 
engagements. 



APPENDIX 

Richmond, Va., March 22, 1904. 

John Gill, of Baltimore, served at my head- 
quarters and near my side for the greater part of 
the war from 1861 to 1865. He was one of a 
number of heroic Marylanders who left their 
homes to join and do service in behalf of the 
South. 

I had him detailed to report to me because I 
had been informed that he was a good soldier and 
performed all the duties confided to him in a satis- 
factory manner. I first assigned him to duty as 
a courier, and afterwards promoted him to be 
Sergeant in the Division Signal Corps. I found 
him active, vigilant, energetic and courageous in 
the various encounters between my command and 
the Federal Cavalry. I am correctly quoted as 
having stated years ago that I would be glad to 
lead in a fight 5,000 men like John Gill against 
10,000 of the enemy. 

He should know what he is writing about, 
because whenever the opportunity occurred his 
place in the war picture was near the flashing of 
the guns. 

FITZHUGH LEE, 

Formerly Major-General Commanding Cavalry Corps 
of the Army of Northern Virginia. 



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